Ebola in America: CDC, White House fighting fears with information
13th October 2014 · 0 Comments
By Hazel Trice Edney
Contributing emergency loan goalkeeper Writer
(TriceEdneyWire.com) — As the first case of the deadly Ebola virus has been diagnosed in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and the White House are pressing to thwart fears with information.
“CDC confirmed on September 30, 2014, through laboratory tests, the first case of Ebola to be diagnosed in the United States in a person who had traveled to Dallas, Texas from West Africa. The patient did not have symptoms when leaving West Africa, but developed symptoms approximately five days after arriving in the United States,” states a press release on CDC.gov.
That person has been identified as Thomas Eric Duncan who died last week. Duncan reportedly contracted the virus while caring for a pregnant woman with the disease in Liberia. She reportedly died but Duncan showed no symptoms until a few days after he arrived in the U. S. Sept. 20. He had been isolated at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas prior to his death.
The CDC says officials are desperately trying to prevent spread of the virus by monitoring at least 50 people who came in contact with Duncan; with nine being at higher risk. As of Sunday, none had shown any symptoms.
News of the first U. S.-diagnosed case of Ebola has sparked worry across the U. S. because the disease has killed more than 3,400 people in West Africa. Two American aid workers, Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol, were diagnosed in Africa, but successfully treated in America with experimental drugs. A 33-year-old NBC freelance cameraman Ashoka Mukpo was being transported from Liberia to the U.S. on Monday also with the deadly virus.
There is no known cure or vaccine. But, the CDC also reports that half of the people who have contracted the virus in Africa have survived it.
President Obama has announced he will send 3,000 troops to help keep order, build hospitals, labs and other loans for bad credit but employed medical facilities. He said this week that an additional 1,000 might be sent. Meanwhile, Americans are on edge with questions about how the virus spreads, what the symptoms are and how to avoid contracting the disease. The following is information that has been posted by the CDC and the White House in attempt to answer questions, dispel myths and educate about the disease:
Ebola History and Background
Ebola was first discovered in 1976 near the Ebola River in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since then, outbreaks of Ebola among humans have appeared sporadically in Africa. Ebola viruses are found in several African countries, including Liberia, Guinea, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone.
Symptoms of Ebola
Fever, headache, joint and muscle aches, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, lack of appetite, and abnormal bleeding are the common symptoms. Symptoms may appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after exposure to Ebola virus though eight to 10 days is most common.
How Ebola is Transmitted
It is transmitted through direct contact with the blood or bodily fluids of an infected symptomatic person or through exposure to objects (such as needles) that have been contaminated with infected secretions. Ebola is not a respiratory disease like the flu, so it is not transmitted through the air. Neither is Ebola transmitted through food or water in the United States. Individuals who are not symptomatic are not contagious. In order for the virus to be transmitted, an individual would have to have direct contact with an individual who is experiencing symptoms or has died of the disease. Individuals who are not symptomatic are not contagious.
In order for the virus to be transmitted, an individual would have to have direct contact with an individual who is experiencing symptoms or has died of the disease. Ebola is spread through direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes in, for example, the eyes, nose, or mouth) with blood or cash loans in danville va body fluids (including but not limited to urine, saliva, sweat, feces, vomit, breast milk, and semen) of a person who is sick with Ebola; objects (like needles and syringes) that have been contaminated with the virus; infected animals.
Though Ebola is not spread through the air , water, or generally by food, Ebola may be spread as a result of handling bushmeat (wild animals hunted for food) and contact with infected bats. There is no evidence that mosquitos or other insects can transmit the Ebola virus. Only mammals (like humans, bats, monkeys, and apes) have shown the ability to become infected with and spread Ebola virus.
Treatment
CDC Director Tom Frieden said the medical response for anyone who has contracted the disease is threefold:
• Caring for the patient, to provide the most effective care possible, and as safely as possible, to maximize the chances that the patient will recover.
• Identifying all people who may have had contact with the patient while he could have been infectious.
• Monitoring those people if they develop fever—isolate and care for them, and eliminate any chances that they will infect other people.
Prevention
To protect yourself from Ebola, wash your hands often with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer; Medical personnel must wear protective gear; Do not touch the blood or body fluids (like urine, feces,saliva, vomit, sweat, and semen) of people who are sick; Do not handle items that may have come in contact with a sick person’s blood or body fluids, like clothes, bedding, needles, or medical equipment. Do not touch the body of someone who has died of Ebola.
“I have no doubt,” Dr. Frieden said, “that we will control this case of Ebola, so that it does not spread widely in this country.”
This article originally published in the October 13, 2014 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
