The Ebola outbreak, 2013–2016: old lessons for new epidemics

• Published in: Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological sciences Vol. 372; no. 1721; p. 20160297
• Main Authors: Coltart, Cordelia E. M., Lindsey, Benjamin, Ghinai, Isaac, Johnson, Anne M., Heymann, David L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England The Royal Society 26.05.2017; The Royal Society Publishing
• Subjects: Africa, Western - epidemiology; Containment; Decision making; Disease control; Ebola; Ebola Outbreak; Ebola virus; Ebola Virus Disease; Ebolavirus; Ebolavirus - physiology; Epidemics; Epidemiology; Fever; Geographical distribution; Hemorrhagic fever; Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola - epidemiology; Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola - prevention & control; Humans; Order parameters; Outbreaks; Review; Viral diseases; West Africa; Ebola outbreak; Ebola; West Africa; Ebola virus disease
• ISSN: 0962-8436; 1471-2970; 1471-2970
• DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0297

Ebola virus causes a severe haemorrhagic fever in humans with high case fatality and significant epidemic potential. The 2013–2016 outbreak in West Africa was unprecedented in scale, being larger than all previous outbreaks combined, with 28 646 reported cases and 11 323 reported deaths. It was also unique in its geographical distribution and multicountry spread. It is vital that the lessons learned from the world's largest Ebola outbreak are not lost. This article aims to provide a detailed description of the evolution of the outbreak. We contextualize this outbreak in relation to previous Ebola outbreaks and outline the theories regarding its origins and emergence. The outbreak is described by country, in chronological order, including epidemiological parameters and implementation of outbreak containment strategies. We then summarize the factors that led to rapid and extensive propagation, as well as highlight the key successes, failures and lessons learned from this outbreak and the response. This article is part of the themed issue ‘The 2013–2016 West African Ebola epidemic: data, decision-making and disease control’.