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Death toll rises to 63 in Ebola outbreak in Guinea

Death toll rises to 63 in Ebola outbreak in West African nation of Guinea
A transmission electron micrograph shows the ultrastructural morphology displayed by an Ebola virus virion. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, CDC - Frederick A. Murphy

CONAKRY, Guinea – Health officials in the West African nation of Guinea say the death toll from a rare Ebola outbreak has risen to 63.

Dr. Sakoba Keita, a spokesman with the health ministry, confirmed Wednesday that three additional people had died after contracting the virus.

International aid workers have set up quarantine centres in the country’s south to isolate patients with the highly infectious and highly fatal disease.

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READ MORE: Ebola – What you need to know about the deadly virus

Ebola has no vaccine or specific treatment. Its initial symptoms – high fever, weakness and headache – can mimic malaria, a much more common disease in West Africa.

Once the virus has caused hemorrhaging, though, victims can start vomiting blood or bleeding from their nose and gums.

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Guinea’s outbreak is the first in West Africa in 20 years.

 

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