The leaders in Mityana district are preparing for the Ebola fight in case the area registers any case as fears of possible spread in Kampala are being dealt with by the Ministry of Health.

Currently, health officials have started meeting with village health Teams [VHTs] to sensitise them about the symptoms of Ebola and also rally them to mobilise the rest of the communities to be vigilant.

In an interview with the Karamoja news website, Dr Mono Denis the head of Health Education in Mityana District urged people to be vigilant as Ebola is trying to take root in the country.

Meanwhile Sheikh Maulana Saed Sekajako the District Dawa Mityana urged the government to unite religious leaders in the fight against Ebola. He discouraged religious leaders from carrying out burials of suspected cases of Ebola to a repeat of what happened in Kasanda.

According to the Ministry of Health statistics, 130 cumulative cases of Ebola Virus Disease have so far been confirmed with 43 confirmed dead and 45 recoveries.

The Ministry has also listed a total of up to 2183 contacts who are to be followed up.

Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a deadly disease with occasional outbreaks that occur mostly on the African continent.

EVD most commonly affects people and nonhuman primates (such as monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees). It is caused by an infection with a group of viruses within the genus Ebolavirus.

Symptoms may appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after contact with the virus, with an average of 8 to 10 days. The course of the illness typically progresses from “dry” symptoms initially (such as fever, aches and pains, and fatigue), and then progresses to “wet” symptoms (such as diarrhoea and vomiting) as the person becomes sicker.