Dear @Golam, "Studies have shown the quarantining of entire villages and countries is highly ineffective, and this analysis shows that yet again. Surveillance and containment, which includes the isolation of cases and quarantine of close contacts, is the only intervention strategy that works that is available." Good article '1 in 5 chance' Ebola will spread to the US by the end of September! "In the new analysis, researchers compared international travel patterns with estimates on the rate of transmission to calculate the speed at which Ebola might spread to different regions of the globe." Maybe the answer is to minimize international travel! Difficult!

There is good research article ASSOCIATION BETWEEN TEMPERATURE, HUMIDITY AND EBOLAVIRUS DISEASE OUTBREAKS IN AFRICA, 1976 TO 2014! Maybe the possible answer to your question should be also searched here!

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/282330.php

http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=20892

Dear Golam, unfortunately I can't be of help seriously, but what I know, you could visit the website(s) of the Robert-Koch-Institute Berlin which has published a lot of specific information on EBOLA-outbreak and policy (in English):  http://www.rki.de/EN/Home/homepage_node.html

not knowing whether ALL German publications will be translated into English. cf.also:

WHO Response to the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) Outbreak_An update (as of 20th Sept.2014),by the Regional Director, 20 September [443.81 kB] http://www.afro.who.int/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=9458&Itemid=2593

Very best regards, Wolfgang

Dear Ljubomir,

Thank you for the good links which provided some good information to explore further!

1.The first link summarized that reducing air travel by as much as 80% would only temporarily prevent the spread of Ebola

2.The second link (J paper) documented about persistence of  Ebola virus in bats and suggested that seasonal migration (wet/rainy season) of fruit bats may result in increased contact with humans and other animals. The paper also reveals that Ebola virus is more persistent in semen than any other fluids

Dear Wolfgang,

Thank you for the links. The first links identified that fruit bats are the animal reservoir of Ebola virus and the second links highlights that the Ebola emergency preparedness and responses should include (a) compliance with the international health regulations, (b) travel and trade restrictions and (c) establishment of new Ebola treatment centres in the affected areas

Dear Golam,

Until we administer a reliable and effective chemotherapy and vaccine against EBV, the following weak points in the transmission routes can be instituted to stem the spread of infection into new regions;

1. screen travellers for EBV  before leaving infected countries by air, land  and sea. Restrain positive EBV cases from leaving .

2. Control export of animals known to be host for EBV . Apply strict measures on trading of these animals.

3.Train local medical staff so that deployment of foreign staff would be reduced, thus decreasing the risk of exporting the EBV as and when  the expatriate leaves. 

4. Monitor and restrict flow of tourists and business travellers into infected countries.

5. Upgrade health facilities for the care of the locally -infected population.

6. Countries bordering infected areas should be guarded if needed militarily to stem out slipping out of EBV cases into new neighbouring areas.

Dear Johari, Thank you for your valuable inputs. yes, screening travellers, restricting animals movement from the infected countries, travel restrictions may help for the short time, In addition, perhaps, raising awareness about Ebola, reducing contact with infected fruit bats or monkeys/apes, consumption/avoiding bush meat , avoiding areas of outbreaks can be other measures!

@Johari, thanks for fine response. Here is the situation is Serbia, last news from mid August! 14 travellers who arrived from African countries where Ebola outbreaks have occurred were placed under epidemiological surveillance!

It was announced that one big hotel near Belgrade airport will be a quarantine!

http://www.tanjug.rs/news/140982/14-people-in-serbia-under-supervision-due-to-ebola-concerns.htm

Australian airports scanned for signs of Ebola

Customs officers are looking out for sick people in Australian airports who could be carrying Ebola as fear mounts about the world’s largest outbreak of the deadly disease. All border protection agencies had been told to look out for the possibility of it when identifying sick people entering Australian ports.

Australia has one of the best border protection systems in the world checking people who are unwell in flight and at the airport. If there is a suspected case, Australia has sophisticated, laboratory space, testing facilities, diagnostic methods, and highly trained virology and medical science staff capable of handling Ebola and other viruses that cause viral haemorrhagic fever

It is urged that people travelling to Africa should follow Australian Government travel alerts. Travellers, especially those returning from west Africa, should alert health authorities if they show symptoms of Ebola including sudden fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and a sore throat.

References 

http://www.smh.com.au/national/australian-airports-scanned-for-signs-of-ebola-20140731-zyvv8.html

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/ebola-is-australia-prepared-20140802-zzhnm.html

It is the same situation in Serbia dear @Golam. " Belgrade's Nikola Tesla Airport will boost border sanitary inspection in the wake of the outbreak of the largest Ebola epidemic the world has seen in 40 years, but all other measures required to prevent occurrences of the disease will be taken as well, Serbian Minister of Health Zlatibor Loncar said."

http://www.tanjug.rs/news/139756/serbia-boosts-inspection-due-to-ebola-epidemic.htm

Dear Ljubomir

Delhi Airport (India) Sets up Quarantine Facility for Suspected Cases

A health facility to quarantine passengers who show symptoms of the Ebola virus has finally been set up at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in New Delhi.

The passengers who showed symptoms of the virus were rushed to the Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital in the city, where they have been quarantined, till their blood tests come back. 

http://www.ibtimes.co.in/ebola-india-delhi-airport-sets-quarantine-facility-suspected-cases-607029

Epidemiologic surveillance of people who came from affected areas is one of the important keys in the chain of transmission.A health facility at the international airports for quarantine is an excellent idea. Two weeks follow up for signs and symptoms are ussually enough.The use of contact precautions by health personnel who came in contact with suspected cases,environmental cleaning and disinfections are of great importance. 

Managing ill people on aircraft if Ebola is suspected

Wear waterproof disposable gloves before directly touching the sick person, blood, or other body fluids.

Reference

Interim Guidance about Ebola Infection for Airline Crews, Cleaning Personnel, and Cargo Personnel. http://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/air/managing-sick-travelers/ebola-guidance-airlines.html

SPAIN!!! "Health professionals in Madrid have blamed substandard equipment and a failure to follow protocol for the first case of Ebola to be contracted outside west Africa."

"Investigations are under way at a hospital in Madrid after a Spanish nurse became the first person known to have contracted the deadly Ebola virus outside West Africa."

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/07/ebola-crisis-substandard-equipment-nurse-positive-spain

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-29516882

Ebola virus ecology; http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/resources/virus-ecology.html

Canadian Ebola Vaccine Begins Testing

Human testing of an experimental Canadian-made Ebola vaccine began Monday, with federal officials saying the drug could be shipped to West Africa within months if it proves successful. The Phase 1 trial will determine if the vaccine created by Public Health Agency of Canada and known as VSV-EBOV is safe for human use. It will also determine the proper dosage level and test for possible side effects.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/canadian-ebola-vaccine-begin-testing-26159256

I have written an article on Ebola virus. Please see this.

Dear @Haradhan, please attach your paper or link to this article on Ebola virus!

Dear Haradhan,

As requested by Ljubomir and also myself, please either attach the article or provide the links to benefits the RG researches that follow this thread

Thank you

In a mean time, 3rd victim of Ebola in Europe! The 56-year-old UN employee, who caught Ebola while working in Liberia, has died at a clinic in Leipzig!

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/14/un-medical-official-dies-ebola-german-hospital

Fast, simple diagnostic test specific to 2014 Ebola outbreak

Researchers have developed a fast and simple diagnostic test solution kit specific to the 2014 Ebola outbreak. The kit detects the DNA finger print of the Ebola Virus in the early stages allowing for pre-emptive healthcare intervention.

Viruses all have a unique genetic fingerprint the same as we do. Ours is encoded in DNA but the Ebola virus uses RNA (Ribonucleic acid). So the kit is designed to specifically detect the Ebola RNA in a patient blood sample.

Process:

1.       Blood sample is taken from patient

2.       RNA is extracted with a few simple steps

3.       RNA is placed in a tube with kit ingredients

4.       Tube goes in to machine

5.       Analysis complete within 90 minutes

Reference

Fast, simple diagnostic test specific to 2014 Ebola outbreak. October 10, 2014.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141010084047.htm

Dear Prof Kamal, you are right.  We should pray for our fellow humans, before and even after the vaccine is available.  I heard on the news just now that it is likely to be available in 2016, but the fight till now against Ebola, is considered a failure.  So far about 50% deaths among the infected, so sad. (From mobile.)

Dear Miranda and Kamal, 

Could you please let us know whether there is some quarantine measures in place in Malaysian and Jordanian airports (for example) to combat Ebola being spread into the country?   

 Jamaica example

Jamaica’s travel ban extends to “persons ordinarily resident in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone as well as persons who have travelled to or transited through Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, within 28 days of having departed from these countries,” the government said, describing it as a temporary measure to protect human and animal health.

The government also said Jamaican citizens and residents would be quarantined, in the interest of public health and national security, for 28 days after any travel to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

This also applied to members of international organisations with a right of entry to the country.

At least two other countries have done the same. It is 21+7, thus increased reliability.

Until now CZ has implemented basic measures depending on health checks on airports including stric quarantine and detailed medical checks of identified persons. Stricter measures are expected to come into force since Nov 21st.

I am not sure if such quarantine as in Jamaican's case, can be applied in European context. Anyway Schengen area allows the movement without restrictions, so it is possible to take train or car without any control. And unfortunately even CZ citizens are still visiting these hot countries both for business and for vacation.

The latest news from Macedonia and Western Balkan countries on EBOLA! Briton Dies in Macedonia, Authorities Suspect Ebola!The Macedonian authorities say they suspect a 56-year-old British national has died of Ebola but will not be able to confirm it until they get results from Germany.

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/brit-dies-in-macedonia-authorities-suspect-ebola

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2786874/Breaking-news-British-man-dies-suspected-Ebola-Macedonia-UK-victim-virus-killed-thousands.html

Dear all,

at lest this thread deals with this issue on logical basis and not with the usual remarks about stigmatization, human rights, etc. It seems to me that we (global meaning) are just in the first phase of any crisis, which usually means underestimating of danger and not sticking to defined protocols. These four cases out of Africa (2 in Spain and 2 in Texas) just pointed out that something was wrong, not explaining clearly what it really was.

From other issues which might be important:

• Relying on declaration of traveller from hot countries - there is no guarantee that traveller fills questionnaire acc. to truth, he/she even might not be aware about contamination. I suppose they are at least obliged to provide with contact data for further check. Also this temperature measurement twice a day is more or less voluntary then obligatory.
• Addresses and contact data (address, phone number, e-mail) - Other passengers aboard of carrier are not probably required to provide with personal data for further contact in the case of necessity, which makes later tracking extremely difficult or practically impossible. And even that it is hard to verify so it again depends on goodwill of passenger.
• Air Crew - Air crew is supposed to use rubber gloves when handling suspected case. It is probaly better than nothing, but good next to nothing if they arent trained how to dispose of them securely. Front line health workers wear two layers of gloves, have special procedure for their removal which includes a lot of chlorine dilution and supervision.

Taking all above into consideration, I still cant see any more effective solution than quarantine is. I am not even sure if we have applied fully something like "The British regulations of 9 November 1896" in below mentioned link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quarantine

Bangladesh Ebola prevention measures-examples

The government of Bangladesh has issued a special alert at immigration centres of all land, air and river ports for the next 90 days to prevent Ebola Virus Diseases (EVD) from getting into Bangladesh. All passengers entering Bangladesh must face medical checkup. There will be special vigilance at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, and 20 beds at Kurmitola Hospital have been kept reserved for emergency treatment of suspected Ebola infected persons. A US team has visited the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka to check Bangladesh’s preparations to prevent the fatal Ebola virus from entering the country. The airport is currently checking temperatures with a hand-held thermal scanner capable of measuring temperature without touching the body.  “A patient with fever would be taken to an isolated room equipped with personal protective equipment (PPE) at the airport and asked some questions.

References

http://thebangladeshtoday.com/national/2014/08/bangladesh-on-special-alert-over-ebola-virus/

http://bdnews24.com/health/2014/10/15/us-scans-bangladesh-ebola-measures

Unfortunately, we all belong to an adolescent, risk-taking technological civilisation whose continuing existence in recent time has had far more to do with good fortune than good planning. The lack of contact from extraterrrestrials does not inspire one with confidence that technological civilisations are in general long-lived. We gamble that there is no need for a coordinated world government. We deprive the WHO of swift access to funds even in times of crisis. We entrust profit-fixated corporations to invest in vaccines for treating even the most dangerous viral outbreaks. We leave many doors open to bioterrorism. When the writing is on the wall for everyone to see, appointed 'experts' look the other way, bungle their responsibilities and reassure us that there is no need for alarm. A global crisis of this severity could only have arisen in this modern age. Could it be that nature is testing out mettle, exposing the true scale of our stupidity, incompetence and reckless complacency?

An effective means of controlling a communicable viral disease is to sever channels of communication. The most efficient means of doing so is to prevent transmission at the source (not at multiple destinations). Since there is no reliable, swift and inexpensive diagnostic test for ebola during the early stages of infection, and symptoms can take many days to manifest themselves, the closure of relevant national borders and the imposition of three week quarantine period for all travellers departing from affected areas is called for. This is a minor inconvenience compared to the possible consequences of non-compliance. These quarantine areas ought to be funded by wealthier nations as a matter of urgency.

One of the few things that a civilisation lacking a coordinated world government has going for it is that serious errors can to some extent be mitigated by geopolitical boundaries. It is clear that the same basic principle of quarantine can also be applied on national/local scales. Short of new and effective treatments I see no other way of eradicating ebola from afflicted cities. Containment is key. Uninfected zones should be buffered from infected zones by quarantine areas. With perseverance and adequate logistical assistance, territory can be gradually reclaimed.

Evidently, our political leaders are insistent that international travel need not be curbed. I suspect this will eventually change, but fear it will not happen before it is too late. Meanwhile, I think our best hope is not prayer but proper disinfection protocols (especially prior to removal of protective clothing), avoidance of physical contact, transfusions of blood from survivors to sufferers and the rapid development of vaccines - accelerated by prompt investment and unencumbered by excessive red tape.

Can quarantines and travel bans thwart Ebola?

Air travel could spread the virus throughout the world by travellers who don’t know they are infected. Travel restrictions, isolation of the infected and quarantine of those known to have been in contact with the infected are a few of the measures that have been suggested for stopping that spread. 

The World Health Organization considers east African countries such as Ethiopia and Kenya as "high risk of transmission" of the Ebola outbreak due to air links with west African nations Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the worst-afflicted countries. The virus has already travelled via infected people to Nigeria, Spain and the US.

Reference 

David Biello. 2014. Can quarantines and travel bans thwart Ebola? Nature News. Nature Publishing Group, 17 October 2014. An article by Scientific American. doi:10.1038/nature.2014.16172.http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/quarantines-and-travel-bans-could-they-work-to-thwart-ebola/

Nigerian approach

Keypoints:

Hard to add anything more.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-did-nigeria-quash-its-ebola-outbreak-so-quickly/

I have learned a while ago (CZ source, unverified) that Liberian families are bribing health workers in order to give them false certificate that their relative didnt died from Ebola. Costs are 40-50 Liberian dollars, which is roughly 0.5 EUR or 0.5 USD. They do it because they feel ashamed that their relative died from Ebola and to give their relative usual burial rites (washing body, displaying body, touching and kissing for last farewel).

I dont know if it is really true or if it is lack of education or if they prefer to keep their traditional habits contradictory to known facts. However, if it is true then expected outbreak is really unavodiable and the communities which practice it  will be probably reduced to the ratio of survivors.

“How did we eventually get to zero Ebola cases in Liberia? By using some unconventional approaches. We supplied illicit drugs to gang members and food to armed robbers so that we could trace their contacts in West Point. Above all, we learnt that mobilizing communities to help themselves is crucial to containing Ebola.” - To beat Ebola in Uganda, fund what worked in Liberia, argues Mosoka Fallah of the Africa CDC...

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-03695-4