Secret to Nigeria’s success in overcoming Ebola: ORS
Friday, October 24, 2014
This morning I awoke to some rare good news regarding Ebola. Nigeria has been declared Ebola-free by the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization.
And once again we hear what many of us already know: ORS saves lives. According to the Associated Press story, aggressive use of ORS is being credited with significantly reducing the mortality rate among those who contracted the disease in Nigeria (Nigeria Declared Ebola-free; “Spectacular Success”). From the story:
“Officials are crediting strong tracking and isolation of people exposed to the virus, and aggressive rehydration of infected patients to counter the effects of vomiting, diarrhea and other symptoms.”
“Dr. Simon Mardel, one of the world’s leading experts on viral hemorrhagic fevers, said the number of deaths could be cut in half if infected people were taught to properly hydrate themselves and do not take anti-inflammatory drugs, which can actually harm Ebola victims… [He] called rehydration a low-tech approach that has been neglected by a medical system focused on groundbreaking research.”
ORS (oral rehydration solution) has been around for 40 years. It’s cheap, easy to prepare, and highly effective.
Source: Defeat DD (link opens in a new window)
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