Ebola Outbreaks

Since 1976, when the Ebola virus was first recognized, there have been 18 confirmed outbreaks of the illness. This article contains charts with detailed information about these outbreaks, including where and when they occurred, how many people died, and other details of the outbreak.

Outbreaks of Ebola: An Overview

Ebola hemorrhagic fever (Ebola) is a very contagious illness that is often fatal in humans and nonhuman primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees). The cause of Ebola outbreaks is an infection with the Ebola virus (see Ebola Pictures). Ebola virus got its name from a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), in Africa, where it was first recognized.
 
There are four identified subtypes of Ebola virus. Three of the four have caused disease in humans:
 
  • Ebola-Zaire
  • Ebola-Sudan
  • Ebola-Ivory Coast.
     
The fourth Ebola virus subtype, Ebola-Reston, has caused disease in nonhuman primates, but not in humans.
 
(Click Causes of Ebola for more information on what causes Ebola.)
 
Outbreaks have appeared sporadically since it first became recognized in 1976. Confirmed cases of Ebola virus infections have been reported in:
 
  • The Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • The Ivory Coast
  • Gabon
  • Sudan
  • Uganda
  • The Republic of the Congo.
     
No case of Ebola in humans has ever been reported in the United States. Ebola-Reston virus caused severe illness and death in monkeys imported to research facilities in the United States and Italy from the Philippines; during these outbreaks, several research workers became infected with the virus, but did not become ill.
 
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
 
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