Summary Key Messages
· This is the largest Ebola outbreak in history and the first in West Africa.
· The outbreak in West Africa is worsening, but CDC, along with other U.S. government agencies and international partners, is taking steps to respond to this rapidly changing situation.
· Ebola poses no substantial risk to the U.S. general population.
· On August 8, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the current Ebola outbreak is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
o The PHEIC declaration underscores the need for a coordinated international response to contain the spread of Ebola.
o Information about the PHEIC declaration is available on the WHO website www.who.int/mediacentre/news/statements/2014/ebola-20140808/en/#.
· A person infected with Ebola virus is not contagious until symptoms appear.
· The virus is spread through direct contact (through broken skin or unprotected mucous membranes in, for example, the eyes, nose, or mouth) with the blood or body fluids such as, but not limited to, feces, saliva, urine, vomit, and semen of a person who is sick with Ebola, or with objects like needles that have been contaminated with the virus, or infected animals.
o Ebola is not spread through the air or by water or, in general, by food; however, in Africa, Ebola may be spread as a result of handling bushmeat (wild animals hunted for food) and contact with infected bats.
· As of August 22, no confirmed Ebola cases have been reported in the United States.
o In 2014, two U.S. healthcare workers who were infected with Ebola virus in Liberia were transported to a hospital in the United States. Both patients have been released from the hospital after laboratory testing confirmed that they no longer have Ebola virus circulating in their blood. CDC has advised the hospital that there is no public health concern with their release and that they do not pose a risk to household contacts or to the public.
o CDC has received many calls from health departments and hospitals about suspected Ebola cases in travelers from the affected countries. These calls have been triaged appropriately, with some samples being sent to CDC for testing. All samples sent to CDC have thus far been negative.
o Samples from other U.S. patients under investigation (all of whom recently traveled to West Africa) are being tested as they are received. To date, all persons under investigation in the United States have tested negative for Ebola.
· As a precaution, CDC is communicating with American healthcare workers about how to detect and isolate patients who may have Ebola and how they can protect themselves from infection.
· Early recognition of Ebola is important for providing appropriate patient care and preventing the spread of infection. Healthcare providers should be alert for and evaluate any patients who may have Ebola.
o A case definition for Ebola virus disease is available at www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/case-definition.html.
· CDC and its partners at U.S. ports of entry are currently not doing enhanced screening of passengers traveling from the affected countries. However, CDC works with international public health organizations, other federal agencies, and the travel industry to identify sick travelers arriving in the United States and take public health actions to prevent the spread of communicable diseases.
· CDC also is assisting with exit screening and communication efforts in West Africa to prevent sick travelers from getting on planes.
· CDC recommends that people avoid nonessential travel to Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.
· CDC recommends that people practice enhanced precautions if traveling to Nigeria.
· Recommendations and guidance may change as new information becomes available.