Ebola cases rise sharply in Sierra Leone

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Thu, 2014-11-06 15:37 — mike kraft

USA TODAY Nov.6, 200r

by Liz Aazbo

Sierra Leone is reporting an alarming increase in the number of new Ebola cases, with 435 confirmed in the past week.

About 24% of the Ebola cases in Sierra Leone have been reported in the past three weeks, although the outbreak began in March, according to the World Health Organization.

Mothers wait inline for their children to be vaccinated by heath workers at the Pipeline Community Health Center, situated on the outskirts of Monrovia, Liberia. The Ebola outbreak has spawned hidden cases of malaria, pneumonia, typhoid and the like that are going untreated because people in the countries hardest hit by Ebola either cannot find an open clinic or are too afraid to go to one.(Photo: Abbas Dulleh, AP)

Those stark figures contrast with the somewhat positive news last week from Liberia, where the number of new cases has been falling....Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, says people shouldn't overreact to the latest numbers. He notes that the number of Ebola cases can vary widely from day to day and week to week, much like daily fluctuations in temperatures.

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http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/06/sierra-leone-ebola-rising/18587607/

Also see Nov. 4 Posting: