Less Deadly Ebola
Previous Ebola outbreaks had 70-80% lethality. They killed so fast that everyone in the distant, bushmeat-eating (monkeys, apes) little village who was exposed died before they could move to another area.
But this outbreak is different. This strain of the virus kills less and kills slower. It's about 50-60% lethal and has a longer incubation period, longer viral load building period, and longer infectious transmission period.
That, plus our ever more connected world, gives infected people greater time to infect others and move father to spread the disease to other places.
It is the basic paradox of epidemiology. By becoming less deadly, a disease can become more deadly.
But this outbreak is different. This strain of the virus kills less and kills slower. It's about 50-60% lethal and has a longer incubation period, longer viral load building period, and longer infectious transmission period.
That, plus our ever more connected world, gives infected people greater time to infect others and move father to spread the disease to other places.
It is the basic paradox of epidemiology. By becoming less deadly, a disease can become more deadly.