Implementation of a National Semen Testing and Counseling Program for Male Ebola Survivors — Liberia, 2015–2016

Public Health Program for Decreasing Risk for Ebola Virus Disease Resurgence from Survivors of the 2013–2016 Outbreak, Guinea

“…The program aimed to mitigate the risk for EVD reintroduction from exposure to survivors' body fluids. We were able to enroll ≈90% of the survivors in Guinea and test the semen of >90% of the enrolled male survivors >15 years of age, an unprecedented rate compared with other survivor monitoring programs (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25).…”

Emerging viral infections

“…Sequencing results early in the outbreak provided valuable insight into origination and transmission routes demonstrating the outbreak started from a single introduction in Guinea in December 2013 and was sustained by human to human transmissions [2]. Sequencing provided molecular evidence that Ebola virus was transmissible by sexual intercourse leading to changes in CDC recommendations for survivors [45,47] and establishing programs to support national testing of semen and other body fluids in male survivors [48]. Rapid outbreak sequencing allowed for the identification of transmission chains in sporadic clusters following the outbreak [46], further adding insight to end the epidemic.…”

Ebola Response Impact on Public Health Programs, West Africa, 2014–2017

“…Serologic testing contributed to the understanding of disease transmission ( 18 ), and programs were established that supported testing of semen and other body fluids for Ebola virus RNA ( 19 ). Local determination of viral sequences also provided key information to inform control efforts; for example, a laboratory established in Sierra Leone in April 2015, staffed by locally trained scientists, conducted rapid sequencing of full Ebola RNA genome sequences and informed the investigation of subsequent Ebola clusters ( 13 , 20 ).…”