It has been confirmed on Tuesday that a patient in a Dallas hospital has been diagnosed with Ebola - the first confirmed case in the United States.
A report from CNN said that the man arrived from Liberia last September 20.
Dr. Thomas Frieden of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that at the time of his arrival, the patient did not exhibit symptoms of the disease, although it has become apparent about four of five days later. Frieden said that the individual was then isolated at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital since Sunday.
According to Fox News, the patient was visiting family in Texas and sought care on September 26, but was not admitted until two days later, and he remains critically ill.
Frieden explained what should happen next in this case. "The next steps are basically threefold. First, to care for the patient ... to provide the most effective care possible as safely as possible to keep to an absolute minimum the likelihood or possibility that anyone would become affected, and second, to maximize the chances that the patient might recover."
He also said that the CDC and Texas officials are trying to identify anyone who may have had contact with the patient. Frieden said, "It's only someone who's sick with Ebola who can spread the disease," said Frieden. "Once those contacts are all identified, they're all monitored for 21 days after exposure to see if they develop a fever."
There is little known about the patient, however, as health officials refused to give details, citing privacy reasons.
However, in order to learn more about the disease, here are some facts about Ebola as noted by the World Health Organization:
Symptoms:
Ebola has an incubation period of up to 21 days, and humans are not infectious until symptoms are developed. Here is a list of what to look out for:
- Fever fatigue
- Muscle pain
- Headache
- Sore throat
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Rash
- Symptoms of impaired kidney and liver function
- Internal and/or external bleeding
- Low white blood cell count
- Low platelet count
- Elevated liver enzymes
Transmission:
The World Health Organization notes that Ebola is introduced through close contact with bodily fluids including blood and secretions. It is also thought that it could spread with the help of infected animals including chimpanzees, gorillas, monkeys, antelope, and porcupines.
Human-to human transmission occurs via direct contact with blood, secretions, organs, and other bodily fluids of infected people as well as surfaces and materials that have been contaminated such as clothing and bedding.
The bottom line is that isolation is needed to help control the disease. Frieden said, "The bottom line here is that I have no doubt that we will control this importation or this case of Ebola so that it does not spread widely throughout this country. There's no doubt in my mind, we will stop it here."