Patient tested in California for possible Ebola exposure

Another patient is being tested in the
United States for possible Ebola exposure -- this
time, in California.
The unidentified patient is being isolated in a
"specially equipped negative pressure room" at the
Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical
Center.
Trained staff are using protective equipment,
coordinated with infectious disease specialists, to
provide care for the patient, said Dr. Stephen M.
Parodi, director of hospital operations at Kaiser
Permanente Northern California, in a statement.
The patient is considered "low-risk" and tests are
being conducted out of "an abundance of caution,"
the California Department of Public Health said.
There are currently no confirmed cases of Ebola in
the state, the agency said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will
be testing the patient's blood samples to determine
whether the Ebola virus is present. All necessary
precautions are being taken to safeguard other
patients and staff, the hospital said.
No further information about the patient
has been released.
Earlier this month, a patient with a high
fever and gastrointestinal symptoms
was admitted to Mount Sinai Hospital in
New York City for Ebola testing, but
tested negative.
He recently traveled to a country in
West Africa where Ebola has been
reported, the hospital said in a
statement.
In July, two Americans, Nancy Writebol
and Dr. Kent Brantly, became infected
with the virus when working with Ebola
patients in Liberia.
Both are currently being treated at
Emory University Hospital in Atlanta.
Ebola doesn't spread through airborne
or waterborne methods. It spreads
through contact with organs and bodily
fluids such as blood, saliva, urine and
other secretions of infected people.
There is no FDA-approved treatment
for Ebola, and Emory will use what
isolation unit supervisor Dr. Bruce
Ribner calls "supportive care." That
means carefully tracking a patient's symptoms,
vital signs and organ function and taking measures,
such as blood transfusions and dialysis, to keep
patients stable.
The Ebola virus causes viral hemorrhagic fever,
which refers to a group of viruses that affect
multiple organ systems in the body and are often
accompanied by bleeding.
Early symptoms include sudden onset of fever,
weakness, muscle pain, headaches and a sore
throat. They later progress to vomiting, diarrhea,
impaired kidney and liver function -- and
sometimes internal and external bleeding.
Emory's isolation unit aims to optimize care for
those with highly infectious diseases and is one of
four U.S. institutions capable of providing such
treatment.