Bioterrorism

Both the Ebola and Marburg viruses are classified as Category A biowarfare agent by the CDC due to their high rate of infectivity and mortality and because no known effective therapies or treatments are currently available to combat the viruses. Thus far, Ebola virus infection in humans has not been found to be transmitted through aerosolized particles. It is limited to direct contact either person-to-person or by direct contact with an infected animal. Consequently, a bioterrorist attack may initially be confined to a small-scale effort, but due to public’s terrifying perception around the disease- Terror feeds on the fear and vulnerability of its target- and some degree of national unpreparedness for an attack with this virus, a small-scale attack with Ebola would be sufficient to cause devastating consequences in the population. There are some general guidelines that have been put in place by the NIH, NIAID, and CDC, which can be followed in case of a bioterrorist attack with Ebola or another viral-induced hemorrhagic fever. These basic, general guidelines include: prevention and access to viral stocks, improved means of detection of a deliberate outbreak, rapid medical recognition of the viral hemorrhagic fever syndrome, rapid laboratory transport and testing of infected samples, prevention of person-to-person transmission once the outbreak is identified, and adequate decontamination procedures.

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This page last updated: 14 April 2004.