Ebola and travel

Ebola is a scary disease.  It stalks people and lies in wait until it overwhelms the patient's immune system and kills a large majority of infected people.

But what are the real risks for travellers?  While I would probably stay away from West Africa at this time, here are some of the facts you should consider when you travel to any other part of the world:


-    Apart from a few isolated cases, all the Ebola cases in the fall of 2014 have been in West Africa.  Those cases outside of West Africa were health care workers who had been in close contact with infected people.  Travellers are not health care workers.

-    Infection occurs from direct contact through broken skin or mucous membranes with the blood, or other bodily fluids or secretions (stool, urine, saliva, semen) of infected people. Infection can also occur if broken skin or mucous membranes of a healthy person come into contact with environments that have become contaminated with an Ebola patient’s infectious fluids such as soiled clothing, bed linen, or used needles.  When you ask yourself what the chances are you come into contact with any of these, you realize the chances for travellers are very slim indeed.

-    Since the Ebola outbreak began in February, around 300,000 people have died from malaria, while tuberculosis has likely claimed over 600,000 lives.  This is not to say Ebola is something the authorities should take lightly, but it does emphasize that the media are blowing the epidemic out of proportion.


-  As the World Health Organization has stated - "While travellers should always be vigilant with regard to their health and those around them, the risk of infection for travellers is very low since person-to-person transmission results from direct contact with the body fluids or secretions of an infected patient."