Ebola: US health worker infected despite precautions

She was wearing full protective gear, a mask, gown and gloves, but somehow a Texas health worker who cared for a Liberian Ebola victim in Dallas became infected with the dreaded disease.

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A man dressed in protective clothing leaves after treating the front porch and sidewalk of an apartment where a second person diagnosed with the Ebola virus resides. The victim, a female nurse who had treated an Ebola patient, was wearing similar protective gear. Mike Stone/AFP

First US Ebola infection sparks fears about safety protocols

WASHINGTON, AFP – A Texas health care worker has become the first person to contract Ebola on American soil, authorities confirmed Sunday, sparking jitters that safety precautions taken by medical staff could be insufficient.

Top US health officials have said a breach of protocol was to blame for the new Ebola patient – the second person infected outside Africa and the second diagnosed in the United States.

"This development is understandably disturbing news for the patient, the patient's family and colleagues and the greater Dallas community," the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

But the CDC insisted that any further spread into the community surrounding the Dallas hospital "can be prevented with proper public health measures."

Earlier, the agency's chief Thomas Frieden said it was clear that "at some point there was a breach in protocol and that breach in protocol resulted in this infection."

The CDC has launched a probe, as well as a hunt for more health care workers who may have been exposed to the dangerous virus.

The unidentified female caregiver at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas tested positive for Ebola on Saturday in a preliminary test and is currently in the hospital, in isolation and in stable condition.

Dan Varga, the chief clinical officer for Texas Health Resources, said the woman "was following full CDC precautions" – protective gear that would have included a mask, gown and gloves.

Police officers stand outside the Texas victim's apartment where measures have been put in place to prevent the spread of the disease. Mike Stone/AFP

Frieden said the woman had "extensive contact" with Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian man who was diagnosed with Ebola in the United States last month and died in Texas on Wednesday.

Duncan was believed to have been infected before he left Liberia and boarded a plane to visit family in Texas.

Meanwhile in Nebraska, a 33-year-old American photojournalist who became infected with Ebola while working in Liberia was continuing to show improvements, doctors said.

In Spain, attention remained focused on 44-year-old Teresa Romero, the Madrid nurse who became the first person infected with the hemorrhagic fever outside of Africa.

The Spanish crisis cell set up after she fell sick said there was "reason to hope" she could recover.

"It seems the viral charge has been brought under control and is diminishing," said Fernando Simon, head of the team set up within the health ministry.

Simon added, however: "We must be highly cautious since this is someone infected with Ebola whose situation remains critical and it is possible that other organs are affected."

Romero is thought to have contracted the disease in late September in a Madrid hospital while caring for a Spanish missionary infected with Ebola in Africa who later died.

Romero has said she thought she might have developed Ebola after brushing her face with a glove – pointing to possible gaps in the safety protocols in hospitals treating Ebola patients.

The World Health Organization reported 4,033 people have died from Ebola as of October 8 out of a total of 8,399 registered cases in seven countries.

Ebola causes fever, diarrhea, vomiting and in some cases internal and external bleeding. It is spread by contact with bodily fluids or exposure to contaminated objects such as needles.

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