Ebola outbreak scare at Durban hospital

Despite widespread panic and frightening chain messages, there have been no confirmed cases of Ebola in KwaZulu-Natal.

The deadly virus is still confined to West Africa, with Kenya just recently classified as a high risk area by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Two of Durban’s major hospitals, Entabeni and King Edward VIII Hospital have ruled out Ebola after a scare earlier this week.

A man who exhibited Ebola-like symptoms after falling ill on a ship docked at Durban harbour, was treated in the Entabeni trauma and emergency unit.

He had travelled from the East Coast of Africa, but the hospital has issued a statement confirming he does not have Ebola.

The man is in quarantine at King Edward while Entabeni’s trauma and emergency unit is temporarily closed for disinfection.

The KZN department of health has placed all premier hospitals on high alert following the scare.

The department maintains, however, that there is no need to panic immediately.

Ebola is a viral disease that manifests as a hemorrhagic fever, meaning sufferers bleed either internally or externally. It has a death rate of between 50% and 90%.

Symptoms are similar to those of influenza and include fever, sore throat, muscle pain and headaches followed by nausea, vomitting and diarrhea. The liver and kidneys then start to shut down.

The disease is still incurable and no vaccination has been developed yet. Victims are treated orally with sweet or salty water, or fed intravenously.

The virus is not airborne and can only be transferred through bodily fluids or contact with an infected animal.