American nurse with Ebola to leave Liberia Tuesday

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

By BILL BARROW and KRISTA LARSON

ATLANTA (AP) — A second American medical missionary stricken with the often deadly Ebola virus is expected to be flown Tuesday to the U.S. for treatment, following a colleague who was admitted over the weekend to Emory University Hospital's infectious disease unit.

Top American public health officials continue to emphasize that treating Nancy Writebol and Dr. Kent Brantly in the U.S. poses no risks to the public as West Africa grapples with its worst recorded Ebola outbreak in history.

"The plain truth is that we can stop Ebola," said Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speaking Sunday on ABC's "This Week. "We know how to control it: hospital infection control and stopping it at the source in Africa."

Brantley and Writebol served on the same medical mission team that was treating Ebola patients in Liberia. Also spreading in Guinea and Sierra Leone, the outbreak has infected more than 1,300 people in West Africa, killing at least 729 of them.

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A plane taxies after arriving at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta., Ga., Saturday, Aug. 2, 2014. Officials at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta expect an American who is infected with the Ebola virus to be transported for treatment today. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20140803/us--ebola_americans-35ff43dfd1.html

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5 things to know about Ebola outbreak in W. Africa: http://www.wthr.com/story/26182596/2014/08/02/5-things-to-know-about-ebola-outbreak-in-w-africa

Posted: Aug 02, 2014 8:41 PM CDT
Updated: Aug 02, 2014 8:41 PM CDT
By The Associated Press
Three West Africa nations are struggling to control an outbreak of Ebola. The virus was first discovered nearly four decades ago in Congo in a village near the Ebola River. Since then there have been sporadic outbreaks.

Five things to know about Ebola and how it is spread:

1. WEST AFRICA OUTBREAK NOW LARGEST IN HISTORY. The current outbreak in the neighboring countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone has sickened more than 1,300 people and killed more than 700 since March. The outbreak is unusual for West Africa as the disease is typically found in the center and east of the continent.

2. SOME PEOPLE HAVE SURVIVED EBOLA. While the fatality rate for Ebola can be as high as 90 percent, health officials in the three countries say people have recovered from the virus and the current death rate is about 60 percent. Those who fared best sought immediate medical attention and got supportive care to prevent dehydration even though there is no specific treatment for Ebola itself.


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