18 September 2014
This is the fourth in a series of regular situation reports on the Ebola Response Roadmap1. The report contains a review of the epidemiological situation based on official information reported by ministries of health, and an assessment of the response measured against the core Roadmap indicators where available. Additional indicators will be reported as data are consolidated.
The data contained in this report are based on the best information available. Substantial efforts are ongoing to improve the availability and accuracy of information about both the epidemiological situation and the implementation of the response.
Following the roadmap structure, country reports fall into three categories: those with widespread and intense transmission (Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone); those with an initial case or cases, or with localized transmission (Nigeria, Senegal); and those countries that neighbour areas of active transmission (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Senegal). An overview of the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where a separate, unrelated outbreak of Ebola virus disease is occurring, is also provided (see Annex 1).
OVERVIEW
The total number of probable, confirmed and suspected cases (see Annex 2) in the current outbreak of Ebola virus disease (Ebola) in West Africa was 5335, with 2622 deaths, as at the end of 14 September 2014 (table 1).
Countries affected are Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone.
Figure 1 below shows the total number of cases by country that have been reported in each epidemiological week between the start of 30 December 2013 (start of epidemiological week 1) and end 14 September 2014 (epidemiological week 37: 8 to 14 September).
>snip everything to Liberia<
LIBERIA
The number of newly reported cases is still rising week on week, primarily driven by a continuation of the recent surge in cases in the capital, Monrovia (figure 3). The number of new cases reported from Lofa county, which borders the Guinean districts of Macenta and Gueckedou, has not increased in week 37 though it is too soon to say whether incidence has stabilized in Lofa.
>snip chart<
In the past few months, staff from WHO, US CDC and other partners have been working closely with the Liberian Ministry of Health to improve data collection and to integrate sources of data to provide the best possible picture of this rapidly evolving outbreak. Some of this work includes consolidating several different databases and cross-checking numbers of cases reported by the Government of Liberia against cases from laboratory test results.
During this process, many cases previously classified as probable and suspected are being reclassified, while at the same time approximately 100 previously unreported cases have been found. These new figures will be published soon, and will reflect significant improvements in data collection, and therefore provide a more accurate understanding of the situation. Liberia remains the country worst affected by the epidemic.
>snip everything else<
Short form, the WHO is reporting everplace but Liberia and total cases went up by 500 to 5,335.
Liberia is getting a new unified Ebola database and “approximately 100 previously unreported cases have been found.”
This appears to be in addition to whatever has happened since 8 Sept. 2014.
My take away is that we are likely over 6,000 cases, rather than 5,300 (+), if the WHO’s preliminary scrubbed Liberia data is added.
News24.com
2014-09-18 18:17
Dakar - The World Health Organisation says more than 700 more Ebola cases emerged in West Africa in one week, a statistic that shows the outbreak is accelerating.
Just three weeks ago the number of new cases was around 500 for a one-week period. The number of people believed to have killed is now more than 2,600, an increase of roughly 200 from the last estimate, WHO said on Thursday. Most deaths have been in Liberia.
The new figures from the UN health agency show that the disease is thought to have sickened more than 5 300 people. Just under half of those cases were recorded in the last three weeks.
Some 318 health care workers have been sickened, and about half have died.