With the sudden death of a 2-year-old girl in Mali, many are now concerned as a 5-year-old boy in New York has been brought in for possible Ebola symptoms. We understand the child recently visited West Africa, so there's a good chance something big could be going on here.
The child is suffering from low-grade fever, but results from a recent test won't be ready until later this afternoon. Furthermore, it is understood that the boy was taken into emergency care by healthcare workers in full Ebola protective gear.
According to Health Commissioner Mary Bassett, the fever is the main reason why this child is currently in quarantine. We can only hope he pulls through in great condition, as being away from his family and friends at this time is probably too traumatizing for his young, underdeveloped mind.
This 5-year-old boy is not the first person to enter New York with Ebola-like symptoms. A 33-year-old emergency room doctor, Craig Spencer, was the first, and as it turned out, he suffered from the virus and is currently being treated.
Before returning back to the United States, Spencer was working closely with Doctors Without Borders in West Africa as they make brave attempts to fight the infection there. Unfortunately, Spencer contracted Ebola and brought it home with him.
There are no reports right now on whether or not he came in contact with anyone while showing symptoms. However, the same cannot be said about the child, so New Yorkers have legitimate reasons to be worried about the future what it may bring.
So far, around 9 persons in the United States have been tested positive for Ebola, and this number is expected to rise.
Men who recovered from the virus, are asked to abstain from sex for up to 3 months, as while the virus is no longer in the bloodstream, it is still in semen.
At the moment, over 10,000 individuals have lost their lives to the illness, and at the rate things are going, we have reasons to believe this number could rise tremendously by 2015. Doctors and scientists are currently hard at work on a cure.
