OCT 12, 2014, 7:36 AM
by DR. RICHARD BESSER; GEETIKA RUDRA; BEN CANDEA
@bencandea
A health care worker who treated Thomas Eric Duncan, the first person diagnosed with Ebola in the United States who later died, has preliminarily tested positive for the deadly virus, Texas officials said today.
The health care worker at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital has been isolated since reporting a low-grade fever Friday, the Texas Department of State Health Services said in a statement. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will conduct further testing to confirm the diagnosis.
If test results hold, it would be the first case of Ebola contracted in the U.S.
"We knew a second case could be a reality, and we've been preparing for this possibility," Dr. David Lakey, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, said in a statement. "We are broadening our team in Dallas and working with extreme diligence to prevent further spread."
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said the health care worker's family asked that the patient's identity not be released, calling the worker a "heroic person."
The health care worker, who's in stable condition, had been taking his temperature twice daily under the CDC's self-monitoring regimen since treating Duncan, said Dr. Daniel Varga with Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital.
The health care worker's apartment complex was being decontaminated Sunday, said Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings. Officials also went door-to-door in the neighborhood and distributed leaflets about the virus.
A pet found inside the health care worker's apartment is also being monitored, Rawlings said. A hazmat crew will clean the interior of the apartment later today.
Anyone who had contact with the health care worker after the person began showing symptoms, including other hospital staff members involved in Duncan's care, will be monitored.
"We are confident that the precautions we have put in place will protect our health care workers," Varga said.
But on CBS' "Face the Nation," Dr. Tom Friedan, head of the CDC, said that the second Ebola diagnosis indicates a clear breach of safety protocol, The Associated Press reported. He said the health care worker had treated Duncan several times after his diagnosis.
ABC News chief health and medical editor Dr. Richard Besser called the health care worker's case concerning, adding that public health officials will need to investigate how the exposure occurred.
While the CDC has said that any hospital is capable of safely treating Ebola, Besser said health care workers need training and practice using protective equipment to do so successfully.
"I would never have gone into an Ebola ward in Africa without being dressed and decontaminated by experts," he said. "Health care workers here should expect no less."
The CDC has not said if the second Ebola patient will be transferred to a specialized isolation facility, like the one at Emory University in Atlanta where two American missionaries who contracted Ebola in Liberia were treated.
"I would hope they are considering that," Besser said.
Varga didn't say whether the health care worker was among 48 people who may have had contact with Duncan after he began showing symptoms. Varga said the worker was considered "low-risk" to contract the virus.
Duncan died Wednesday at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, where he had been isolated during his treatment. His medical records show he had a 103-degree fever when he initially went to the hospital, but was sent home with antibiotics and Tylenol.
He returned to the hospital two days later when his symptoms worsened.
Duncan, who hails from Liberia, had arrived in the U.S. on Sept. 20 to visit family members in Dallas.
His neighbors in Monrovia told ABC News that he had helped carry a vomiting pregnant woman to get help, but his records revealed that he told the hospital he hadn't been in contact with anyone who was sick, according to The Associated Press.
Doctors and nurses at the hospital were aware Duncan had recently been in Africa.
While the health care worker undergoes treatment at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, the hospital will divert its emergency care services to surrounding hospitals, Varga said.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/texas-h...ry?id=26135108