Approved for public release, distribution unlimited.

October 14, 2014

TA-233-1014

EVD

What You Need 

to Know

(EBOLA VIRUS 

DISEASE) 

Risk of Infection 

 Health care workers, laboratory personnel, 

and family members of an EVD patient are at 

the highest risk for exposure because they are 

most likely to be in close contact with very sick 

EVD patients. 

 Practicing standard infection control 

precautions, including hand washing and 

wearing appropriate personal protective 

equipment (PPE) prevents exposure. 

 Just being in a country where people are 

ill with EVD is not dangerous. Contact with 

healthy individuals and most everyday 

activities do not increase a person’s risk of 

becoming infected. 

 Although people can be infected with Ebola 

virus and not yet feel sick, they are not 

contagious until they have symptoms. By the 

time a person is very infectious to others, they 

are typically very ill and not walking around or 

doing normal activities. 

Vaccines

No FDA-approved vaccine is currently 

available to protect against EVD infection. The 

experimental Ebola virus vaccines are so early in 

development that safety testing has just started. 

The Department of Defense is closely monitoring 

the testing of new Ebola virus vaccines and 

treatments.

Treatment

 Standard treatment for Ebola is supportive 

care which is balancing the patient’s fluids and 

electrolytes, maintaining their oxygen status 

and blood pressure, and treating them for any 

complicating infections.

 Successful recovery from an Ebola virus 

infection likely depends more on early 

recognition and treatment with supportive 

care at a state-of-the-art hospital than on the 

experimental treatment now available.

U.S. Military Assistance in 

West Africa

 As part of Operation United Assistance, military 

personnel support for this U.S. government effort 

will include:

• Logistics and Transportation – Establish a 

regional intermediate staging base 

• Engineering - Build additional Ebola treatment 

units

• Medical - Train local health care workers about 

EVD and how to protect themselves from 

infection 

 The overwhelming majority of tasks U.S. military 

personnel will be performing should not put them 

at risk of becoming infected with Ebola virus. 

U.S. military personnel are trained to identify and 

assess risk and implement measures such as the 

appropriate use of personal protective equipment 

to mitigate the risk of becoming infected with the 

Ebola virus.

More Information

 CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/

 USAPHC: http://phc.amedd.army.mil/topics/

discond/diseases/Pages/EbolaVirusDisease.aspx

 WHO: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/ebola/en/

 Local Medical Treatment Facility: Contact the 

Preventive Medicine service
Ebola Virus Transmission

 Ebola virus enters the human population from 

direct contact with infected animals. It then spreads 

from person to person by direct contact with blood, 

secretions, organs or other bodily fluids (such as 

sweat, vomit, and diarrhea) of infected people. 

 Only people who have symptoms of EVD, or have 

recently died from EVD, can transmit the virus to 

others. The risk of spreading the infection to others 

increases as the disease progresses.

 Objects or surfaces contaminated with an EVD 

patient’s blood or other body fluids are also possible 

sources of infection but the virus is easily killed with 

basic cleaning and disinfection procedures.

 Ebola virus is not spread through the air like a 

common cold or by casual contact (like sitting next 

to someone or having a conversation). Ebola virus 

is not spread through drinking water, food (besides 

The Ebola Virus Disease 

Outbreak in West Africa

 An outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD), 

which likely began in a rural area of Guinea in 

December 2013, has spread to other countries 

in the region. Several thousand suspected and 

confirmed cases of EVD have been reported 

from the affected countries; many have died.

 Disease control efforts in affected regions 

have been difficult due to lack of sufficient 

healthcare resources, poor living conditions, 

misinformation, local traditions (such as burial 

and funeral practices which increase disease 

transmission), and people who do not seek 

medical care due to distrust.

General Information on 

Ebola Virus Disease

• History - EVD first appeared in 1976 in two 

simultaneous outbreaks in Sudan and what 

is now the Democratic Republic of Congo.

• Transmission - Scientists believe the 

source of the virus is most likely bats, and 

other animals can also become infected. 

An outbreak in humans begins when an 

individual or small group of people become 

infected by eating uncooked or undercooked 

meat from infected game animals, such 

as bats and monkeys, also known as 

“bushmeat.” Once humans are infected, the 

virus can be spread from person to person. 

People infected with Ebola virus can only 

spread the virus to others after they 

become ill. 

• Prevention - EVD is preventable, and 

people can avoid being exposed by following 

good personal hygiene practices and using 

personal protective equipment (PPE) when 

they may have contact with ill patients. 

• Treatment - There are no licensed vaccines 

or specific treatments for EVD yet, but 

several new products are being tested in 

humans. Patients who sought care soon 

after symptoms started have survived with 

only supportive care, such as balancing the 

patient’s fluids and electrolytes and treating 

for any complicating infections. 

undercooked bushmeat), being bitten by 

insects like mosquitoes or ticks, or contact with 

people who have recovered. Just being in a 

country where people are ill with EVD is not 

dangerous. One can avoid being exposed to 

Ebola virus by understanding how it is spread 

and by taking basic precautions.

Symptoms of Ebola 

Virus Disease

EVD symptoms can start 2 to 21 days after 

becoming infected with the virus, but typically 

symptoms begin in 8-10 days. The most common 

symptoms of EVD are fever, tiredness, loss 

of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, headache and 

stomach pain. Rash, red eyes and the bleeding 

some people think of when they hear about 

Ebola virus are not commonly seen. The most 

common signs and symptoms of EVD are similar 

to the symptoms of malaria or influenza. 

The largest outbreak of Ebola virus disease 

(EVD), which likely began in a rural area of 

Guinea in December 2013, has spread to 

other countries in the region.