Man in Victoria cleared of Ebola as health system passes first test
A man in Victoria has been cleared of the Ebola virus, health authorities have confirmed, having passed the first test of the state’s response to a possible case of the deadly disease.
The man presented to Monash Medical Center’s emergency department on Tuesday with Ebola-like symptoms before being transferred to the Royal Melbourne Hospital.
He had recently returned from an area near the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, where health authorities were grappling with a major outbreak.
The man was placed in a negative pressure ventilation chamber and released Wednesday after being cleared of the infection.
“Victoria’s health system has clear and well-established protocols for managing serious infectious diseases, including rapid identification, isolation, testing and specialist care where necessary,” Victoria’s chief health officer Dr Caroline McElnay said.
“Although the risk of Ebola disease in Victoria is low, it is a serious disease and our health system recently responded appropriately to a low-probability suspected case.”
The man was considered a low-probability case, but hospitals are required to take strict infection prevention and control measures.
The incident represented the province’s first test of the response plan put in place following major outbreaks of the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.
On Friday, Dr McElnay issued advice for clinicians to be aware of Ebola symptoms.
Dr Elnay said clinicians should consider whether a patient has Ebola if they have a temperature above 38 degrees and have visited an affected area or been in contact with someone carrying the virus.
Dr Elnay said the risk of an Ebola outbreak in Australia was very low.
On Friday, the World Health Authority said there were 906 suspected cases and 223 deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
There were a further 134 confirmed cases in both countries, including 18 deaths.
Symptoms of the virus include fever, muscle and joint pain, headache, vomiting, diarrhea,
abdominal pain and decreased kidney and liver function.
Symptoms may appear two to 21 days after exposure.
