Ugandan patient suspected of having Ebola tests positive for malaria in RJ
In the late afternoon of this Saturday (30), the Strategic Information Center for Health Surveillance (Cievs) in Rio de Janeiro received a patient from Uganda, Africa, with viral symptoms, which raised the alarm about the possibility of Ebola. So far, the man has received a positive diagnosis of malaria, but remains in isolation until the Ebola diagnosis is ruled out.
The patient was transferred to the Evandro Chagas National Institute of Infectious Diseases (INI/Fiocruz), so that the suspected cases protocol could be activated. The case was articulated in conjunction with the State Department of Health of Rio de Janeiro.
As Fiocruz stated in a note to CNN Brasil, the patient presented symptoms of coughing, chills and diarrhea, and, as Uganda is one of the countries with confirmed cases of Ebola, he was subjected to the safety protocol for care and isolation until he received a conclusive diagnosis. The patient received care for his clinical condition and diagnostic tests were performed.
At the same time, the Epidemiological Surveillance of SES - RJ, together with the Health Surveillance, is mapping the people who may have had contact with the patient. Contactors are advised to report symptoms of sudden high fever, severe headaches, muscle and joint pain.
The alert is being raised because Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo are the two countries experiencing an Ebola epidemic. According to the director general of the WHO (World Health Organization), the outbreak of the disease is spreading more quickly; the number of suspicious deaths reached 220.
How is Ebola transmitted?
The Ebola virus can be transmitted through contact with the blood, tissues or body fluids of someone infected - including animals or corpses -, or through contact with contaminated surfaces and objects.
Compared to Covid-19, for example, the risk of contagion is much lower, as the Ebola virus is not transmitted through the air. This makes the risks of a new pandemic small.
Another thing that makes the risk of transmission lower is that, with Ebola, there is no transmission during the incubation period. The infection generally becomes transmissible from the moment the patient already shows symptoms, which facilitates contact tracing and disease control.
"The outbreak is worrying, but the risk of a pandemic similar to that of Covid is small. This time, the outbreak took a while to be detected because the United Nations suffered a dismantling of program resources in Africa", said infectious disease doctor Mirian Dal Ben, from Hospital Sírio-Libanês, in a recent interview with CNN Brasil.
Symptoms, which appear between two and 21 days after infection, include high fever, headache, body aches, vomiting and diarrhea. In more serious cases, the patient may progress to hemorrhagic fever, with a risk of bleeding.
Ebola: what it is, symptoms and treatment
*With information from Maria Paula Giacomelli, in collaboration with CNN Brasil.
Source: CNN