A day doesn’t go by without hearing about another potential case of the Ebola virus breaking out in our country. The virus, which can cause people to bleed out of every orifice before dying is, of course, scary. When news broke a few weeks ago that a man infected with the virus died in Dallas, and then his nurse contracted the disease, it sent a flood of news sources to report non-stop about the danger.
Then a doctor living in Manhattan was diagnosed with the disease.
Naturally, parents were among the first to become terrified. Comments on social media ranged from some simply releasing their nervousness to the online world to others stating they were considering homeschooling their children. While there is no need for hysteria, some parents just cannot bring themselves to turn off the TV and get the facts. The fact remains that the likelihood of any of us contracting Ebola here in the New York City area without having traveled to the places in Africa where it has broken out remain exceedingly small.
Here are five facts you need to know about Ebola:
General public is safe
“There is no risk to the general public,” says Dr. Jennifer Lighter Fisher, clinical assistant professor, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Infectious Diseases at NYU Langone Medical Center. “This virus is transmitted from people infected and sick with Ebola by contact with blood or body fluids. Only individuals taking care of sick patients could be at risk if not wearing the personal protective gear. The general public in the United States should not be in fear of contracting this virus, as there is no risk to the public.”
An epidemic in the US is unlikely
The risk of an Ebola virus epidemic occurring here in the United States is very remote, says Dr. Roberto Posada, Pediatric Infectious Disease specialist at the Kravis Children’s Hospital at Mount Sinai.
“This particular virus is not very contagious, or in other words, cannot be easily spread from person to person. Unlike other illnesses, such as the measles, chickenpox, or flu, that are transmitted through the air, direct contact with secretions or body fluids (e.g. touching vomit, urine, blood, or other bodily fluids) from a patient ill with Ebola is required for transmission of the disease.”
Transmission takes time
Only individuals who are sick can transmit the virus.
“In illnesses like the measles or chickenpox, infected individuals can transmit the infection before they even know they are sick,” says Dr. Posada. “In the case of Ebola, only sick individuals can transmit the virus, which allows health workers to identify infected patients and place them in isolation.”
Wash those hands
The best prevention against Ebola is practicing careful hygiene. It’s what we all learned in childhood: wash your hands with soap and water. Using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer also helps and of course, avoiding contact with blood and body fluids, which, hopefully, we are all doing on a regular basis anyway.
Know the symptoms
Symptoms of Ebola include fever (greater than 101.5 degrees F), severe headache, muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, unexplained bleeding or bruising. Symptoms appear anywhere from two to 21 days after exposure to Ebola, but the average is eight to 10 days.
But it’s a good idea to keep the facts of the risk in perspective. As Dr. Fisher says, “Going into the winter months will bring countless colds, flus, sniffles, and sneezes, and we can’t go about life living under the duress of catching Ebola.”
Danielle Sullivan, a mom of three, has worked as a writer and editor in the parenting world for more than 10 years. Sullivan also writes about pets and parenting for Disney’s Babble.com. Find Sullivan on her blogs, Just Write Mom and Some Puppy To Love.
