The disease rendered wide spread devastation in the Sub Region causing the death of several thousands of infected cases before it was subsequently brought under control, draining significant resources. This study reviewed existing literature using the PRISMA statement for reporting systematic review as a guide. It sorts to describe the epidemiological and socio-economic factors that affected the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak and to highlight the control measures implemented during the period. | JOURNAL OF MEDICAL RESEARCH EPIDEMIOLOGY AND CONTROL OF THE 2014 EBOLA VIRUS DISEASE OUTBREAK IN WESTERN AFRICA: A NARRATIVE REVIEW OF LITERATURE 1 Ninsawu Nicholas Nakpan, 2Stanley Gordon Fenwick Le Minh Giang, 4Pham Quang Thai, 5Prosper Mandela Amaltinga 1 Institute of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Hanoi Medical University, Vietnam 2 Fenwick Tufts University, United States; 3Department of Global Health-Hanoi Medical University, Vietnam; 3 4 National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Vietnam; 5 Clinical Nursing Department, Nyaho Clinic-Ghana The 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak was the largest outbreak of the disease on the continent and the globe at large, beginning December 2013 in Guinea. The disease rendered wide spread devastation in the Sub Region causing the death of several thousands of infected cases before it was subsequently brought under control, draining significant resources. This study reviewed existing literature using the PRISMA statement for reporting systematic review as a guide. It sorts to describe the epidemiological and socio-economic factors that affected the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak and to highlight the control measures implemented during the period. Human interaction with the vegetation created exposure to the EVD and males had an overall incidence slightly higher than females whilst being a child was a significant risk of dying from the infection. A weak health system and inadequate infrastructure in affected countries contributed largely to early spread. International organizations’ collaborating with local partners formed an immense component to controlling the outbreak. Effective collaboration is required at international and national levels of the world to remain prepared for future outbreaks. It calls for a ‘One Health’ approach to tackling future events. Keywords: Epidemiology, socio-economic factors, control, containment, implementation, West Africa I. INTRODUCTION outbreak started in December 2013 in
