Ebola Virus Hemorrhagic Fever

Ebola is a severe, often deadly disease that is caused by the Ebola virus. Symptoms of Ebola most commonly begin 8-10 days after coming into contact with the Ebola virus, but symptoms can occur anywhere between 2-21 days after exposure.

Symptoms of Ebola include: fever, headache, joint and muscle pain, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, lack of appetite and abnormal bleeding. These symptoms are not specific to Ebola and are often seen with other illnesses.

Ebola is spread through direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with blood or body fluids (including but not limited to urine, saliva, sweat, feces, vomit and semen) of a person who is sick with Ebola, or a person who has recently died from Ebola. It also may be spread on objects or surfaces contaminated with blood or body fluids of an infection person. A person who is not experiencing symptoms, such as fever, vomiting or diarrhea, cannot transmit the virus.

Ebola is NOT spread through the air, water or food.

Ebola has been detected in blood and many body fluids. Body fluids also include saliva, mucus, vomit, feces, sweat, tears, breast milk, urine and semen.

Direct contact means that body fluids (blood, saliva, mucus, vomit, urine or feces) from an infected person (alive or dead) have touched someone’s eyes, nose, mouth or an open cut, wound or abrasion.

Ebola is killed with hospital-grade disinfectants (such as household bleach). Ebola on dried surfaces, such as doorknobs and countertops, can survive for several hours; however, virus in body fluids (such as blood) can survive up to several days at room temperature.

At this time, there are no cases of Ebola in Illinois.

At this time, Ebola does not pose a great health risk to the people of Illinois.

Family, friends and health care workers caring for people sick with Ebola are at higher risk of getting Ebola.

People who touch the bodies of Ebola patients who have died also are at risk.

Early recognition is critical for infection control. Health care providers should be alert for and evaluate patients suspected of having Ebola who have:

• a fever of greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or additional symptoms, such as severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain or unexplained hemorrhage; AND
• risk factors within the past three weeks before the onset of symptoms, such as contact with blood or other body fluids of a patient known to have or suspected to have Ebola; and residence in—or travel to—an area where Ebola transmission is active
  

Only patients experiencing symptoms can transmit the virus. Ebola cannot be spread to other people before symptoms begin.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) screens travelers who have been in countries most affected by the Ebola outbreak.

Illinois hospitals following the CDC’s infection control recommendations and hospitals that are able to properly isolate a patient in a private room‎ are capable of safely managing a patient with Ebola. IDPH and the CDC recommend hospitals isolate the patient in a private room and implement standard, contact and droplet precautions.

The standard treatment for Ebola remains supportive therapy. This includes the following measures:

• balancing the patients' fluids and electrolytes;
• maintaining their oxygen status and blood pressure; and
  
• treating them for any complicating infections
  

Some patients infected with Ebola virus do get better spontaneously or with supportive care.

Recovery from Ebola depends on good supportive clinical care and a patient’s immune response. Available evidence shows that people who recover from Ebola infection develop antibodies that last for at least 10 years, possibly longer. It is not known if people who recover are immune for life or if they can become infected with a different species of Ebola.

Once someone recovers from Ebola, they can no longer spread the virus. However, Ebola virus has been found in semen for up to three months. People who recover from Ebola are advised to abstain from sex or use condoms for three months.

At present, there is no evidence that mosquitoes or other insects can transmit Ebola virus. Only mammals (e.g., humans, bats, monkeys and apes) have shown the ability to spread and become infected with Ebola virus.

Handling disease outbreaks is a core public health function and IDPH is prepared to conduct surveillance for possible cases, implement infection control measures, support medical facilities, perform contact tracing and assist with laboratory testing.

IDPH will continue to work with the CDC, local health departments, and hospitals and medical facilities.

Call your doctor or clinic right away if you have a fever, headache, or joint and muscle aches within three weeks of returning home.

Tell your doctor where you traveled, what you did and if you had contact with anyone who was sick with Ebola.

It is important to call your doctor in advance of seeking health care so that you are directed to the appropriate facility for medical care, and to be sure that facility is prepared for your arrival.

No, you do not need to avoid contact with someone who recently returned from one of the affected countries unless they have symptoms compatible with Ebola.

If a person who recently returned from Uganda has symptoms of Ebola, such as fever, the individual should contact a health care provider and tell them about their recent travel and any exposure(s) to ill individuals. The health care provider will evaluate the person’s risk of Ebola as well as other more common infections in Uganda such as malaria and typhoid.

• US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention