US health officials test for possible Ebola contagion
- 10 years ago
Health experts in the United States are worried that a man diagnosed with Ebola may have inadvertently exposed others to the deadly virus.
The man first visited the hospital in Dallas,Texas last Friday, but was given antibiotics and sent home. He was not admitted until his second visit two days later.
“It’s only spread by direct contact with someone who’s sick with the virus, and it’s only spread through body fluids”, said Dr Tom Frieden of the Center for Disease Control. “The incubation period is eight to ten days after exposure. It can be as short as two days or as long as 21 days. It’s a severe disease, which has a high case fatality rate even with the best of care, but there are core tried and true public health interventions that stop it”.
The man, who is in a serious condition, is thought to have contracted the deadly virus in Liberia before traveling to the US nearly two weeks ago.
Emergency response workers who took him to hospital in Dallas have been tested for the virus, but so far results have been negative.
Health officials in the US say the country’s a good public health system is likely to prevent any potential outbreak.
The man first visited the hospital in Dallas,Texas last Friday, but was given antibiotics and sent home. He was not admitted until his second visit two days later.
“It’s only spread by direct contact with someone who’s sick with the virus, and it’s only spread through body fluids”, said Dr Tom Frieden of the Center for Disease Control. “The incubation period is eight to ten days after exposure. It can be as short as two days or as long as 21 days. It’s a severe disease, which has a high case fatality rate even with the best of care, but there are core tried and true public health interventions that stop it”.
The man, who is in a serious condition, is thought to have contracted the deadly virus in Liberia before traveling to the US nearly two weeks ago.
Emergency response workers who took him to hospital in Dallas have been tested for the virus, but so far results have been negative.
Health officials in the US say the country’s a good public health system is likely to prevent any potential outbreak.