Update on Ebola:
Ebola Returns in “Cured” Doctor
Dr. Ian Crozier, who was seemingly cured of Ebola last October, is facing the disease again. It’s been lurking in his left eye all along. Fading sight, severe pain and strong pressure led doctors to the discovery, while Crozier also faced joint and muscle pain, fatigue, and hearing loss. The color of his left eye also changed from blue to green. Crozier became infected with Ebola while working as a volunteer for the World Health Organization in Sierra Leone, where a large portion of infections began. Long-term effects about the disease have not been closely studied due to the limited number of outbreaks previously reported. Similar accounts are being reported in West Africa.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2015/05/07/ebola-returns-in-cured-doctor.html
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1500306?query=featured_home&#t=article
Ping to post 25...
Thanks, caww!
hecky durn.
That is unfortunate. The NEJM article indicates that he has improved, however.
Some researchers have found Ebolavirus lurking inside the eye. I wondered why they were taking samples of the vitreous humor, but I guess if there are symptoms, there would be reason to do so.
The virus tends to lurk in areas that are shielded from the immune system. The inside of the eye is unlikely to pose a transmission risk, but the presence of virus in other reservoirs is certainly a problem. Given that persistence, the 42 day Ebola-free period before an outbreak is declared over in a region may need to be rethought.
Speaking of that, Liberia is about to be declared clear, and case counts in Sierra Leone and Guinea are trending downwards. I’m looking forward to this thing being over.