Ebola virus disease outbreak: what's going on.

The current West African Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak was confirmed in March, 2014, and after months of slow, fragmented responses, the EVD has been recognized as a public health emergency of international concern. The early diagnosis of the disease is difficult without laboratory testing, because its symptoms can be seen in many other infections. In the wake of international agencies advices, the Italian Ministry of Health, on October 1, 2014, released to the Healthcare Professional Workers (HPWs) the Protocol about the management of cases and contacts within the national territory. Due to the increasing number of humanitarian groups and HPWs involved in the field, the probability to have new cases of contamination is higher than ever. Proven specific treatments against EVD are not yet available, however, a variety of compounds have been under testing. The most effective are select monoclonal antibodies that have a high neutralizing potential against epitopes of Ebola Virus. For facing the matter, it is important a comprehensive approach according to the recommendations proposed by the international agencies because no single institution or country has all the capacities to respond to a new and emerging infectious disease.