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Ebola patients are missing out on basic care that could improve their chances of survival, the BBC said, citing a report in the Lancet medical journal.

Researchers say organisations are being misled by an "inaccurate view" that there is no proven treatment for Ebola.

They add that patients, who could be treated with fluids and electrolytes, are dying of dehydration.

Charities say there are many challenges to giving the intensive fluid replacement that some patients need.

Ebola has killed more than 6,000 people in the worst-affected areas of Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.

The virus causes severe vomiting, diarrhoea and bleeding - all of which can lead to the profound loss of fluids and electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium.

When patients are too sick to drink they can be given fluids intravenously - using a drip through a vein.

But Prof Ian Roberts, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and Prof Anders Perner, at the University of Copenhagen, say these rehydration therapies are being neglected while people focus on potential drugs and vaccines.

Prof Roberts told the BBC: "When the outbreak started, people thought there was nothing we could do unless we killed the virus.

"But it quickly became apparent when people treated in high-income countries didn't all die that ordinary good-quality medical care makes a huge difference.

"There are some simple things - like replacing fluids and electrolytes - that could improve the fatality rate."