of the deadliest diseases on earth. So what do we need to know about this highly

contagious virus? Our Shin Se-min answers the key questions.

It would be extremely difficult... at first... to detect whether someone has been infected,...

because Ebola symptoms are similar to the common cold in the beginning.

BUT within days,… the patient will begin to experience chronic abdominal pain, bleeding

eyes, vomiting and diarrhea along with deadly organ failure,... eventually resulting in

death within a couple of weeks.

So how is the virus transmitted? Through DIRECT contact with the bodily fluids

of an infected person. This includes blood, sweat, saliva or other

body fluids,... making transmission through casual contact in a public setting unlikely.

But as I said earlier... BECAUSE it's difficult to detect the virus in the early stages, there's

an increased risk of transmission. Ebola can kill up to 90-PERCENT of those infected,...

although in the current outbreak, the death rate stands at around 55 percent.

And this latest outbreak... that was first detected in Guinea in February,... is spreading

fast... and has since expanded to Sierra Leone, Liberia and even Nigeria.

West African states, especially, lack the resources to fight Ebola,... and cultural

factors are also making it difficult to put the brakes on its spread.

So what can we do to avoid coming in contact with this deadly virus?

In just like any other stories like this, be sure to wash your hands regularly... and

beware of people with flu-like symptoms. Shin Se-min, Arirang News.