Amazingly, after all the anguish these past few weeks over the man who died of Ebola at a Dallas hospital, Thomas Duncan, and the subsequent infection of two Dallas nurses who treated him at that facility, neither of them is dead. In fact, Amber Vinson, the Dallas nurse who flew to Cleveland before her infection was detected, has now been declared Ebola free:
Vinson arrived at Emory University Hospital last week for treatment. As of Tuesday night, officials with the hospital and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Ebola were not able to detect Ebola in Vinson’s body, her family said in the statement.
Vinson “has also been approved for transfer from isolation,” the family’s statement read. “We all know that further treatment will be necessary as Amber continues to regain strength, but these latest developments have truly answered prayers and bring our family one step closer to reuniting with her at home,” her mother, Debra Berry, said in a statement.
Great news for Ms. Vinson and her family. In addition, the other nurse, Nina Pham, whom contracted Ebola after treating Mr. Duncan, has had her condition upgraded from “Fair” to “Good” according to the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center where she is being treated. And also NBC News camera person, Ashoka Mukpo, who contracted the illness on assignment in Liberia, has also been declared Ebola free “according to a statement from the Nebraska Medical Center.”
Perhaps, this should serve as a lesson to our national media and to those who “rushed to judgment” seeking to blame the head of the CDC, Thomas Frieden, and President Obama for their handling of the “Ebola” crisis, that we were not as ill prepared as some have suggested. Did everything go smoothly? No, but we learned quickly how to handle patients with Ebola. If Thomas Duncan had been treated initially when he went to the Dallas Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital exhibiting signs of this infection, perhaps he would have survived as well.
In any case, good news. Maybe we don’t need an Ebola Czar after all.
Good thing we raised hell early on arguing PresbyD, Texas Health and CDC were deficient in handling the ebola case. Review the arguments of PresbyD why the doctors in Dallas couldn’t save Duncan. The transfer of both nurses to special facilities likely made all the difference and saved their lives, see also the Madrid nurse who was treated with blood serum from a nun who had survived ebola. The blood transfusion with anti-bodies turned the tide of her health.
Nigeria has its own heroes who made the difference to contain single cases or a larger outbreak.
Obama should get credit for responding and delivering aid to West Africa. Yes, mistakes were made especially in lack of funding WHO to set up medical facilities in Africa in recent years.
What the ebola crisis has brought home, due to globalization and air travel, the health problems in other continents are indeed our concern. The blessing of this outbreak and the thousands of deaths will bring special drugs and a vaccin nearer to eradicate the ebola virus before spreading in the future. It was about time!
Odd that none of the hospitals workers that evaluated Duncan on 9/25-9/26 and on 9/28 or those he was around at Troh’s apartment were infected. It’s unknown when Pham and Vinson were infected (anywhere from 9/29 — 10/8) and how.
Dr. Adadevoh was an excellent clinician. But remember, it was two or three days after Sawyer was admitted to hospital that she ordered he be tested for Ebola. Initially suspecting and treating for malaria. Sawyer had reached a “hot” stage of EVD by the time he arrived at the hospital. Infected two ECOWAS colleagues that met him at the Lagos airport. Eleven health workers at the Lagos hospital were also infected and five didn’t survive. In Nigeria there were three second order infections (distance from the index case – Sawyer) and one death (a doctor that could have survived if he’d been quickly isolated and treated) and two and probably three third order infections.
Index cases are always difficult for clinicians to diagnose quickly unless they are specifically on high alert to notice one if it should ever appear. The Presby D doctor suspected Ebola earlier in the course of Duncan’s EVD than Adadevoh did in Sawyer’s. Possibly too late in Duncan’s case, but nothing could have been done for Sawyer by the time he reached Lagos. Had he not broken quarantine three days earlier and received treatment, he might have lived. Neither Sawyer nor Duncan helped the doctors or nurses by admitting that they could possibly have come in contact with EVD victim. Dr. Adadevoh and Duncan’s Presby D doctor ordered the Ebola test in spite of Sawyer’s and Duncan’s denials.
Not sure why you insist that had Duncan been admitted Presby D two days earlier that a doctor would have suspected Ebola earlier. Wouldn’t have run through the same possible list over two to three days as Dr. Adadevoh did with Sawyer. It’s also unknown if treatment beginning a day earlier would have saved Duncan.
Why do you praise Dr. Adadevoh (not that I disagree with this praise) and condemn the Presby D doctors? Presby D is the only US hospital to have been presented with an undiagnosed EVD patient. They got there as fast as Dr. Adadevoh did with an index case and with symptoms that were less pronounced.
Not only that, but we aren’t seeing additional cases from those women’s contacts, either.
Meaning it really isn’t as contagious as my hyperventilating co-workers claimed last week (they’re all quite as mice this week).
quiet as mice. Perhaps they are all quite as mice tool. Damned typos.
IMO, given his qualifications, the named Ebola Czar’s job duties amounted to: Being a punching bag for the media and the GOP so that the conversation could move on.
But if this keeps happening the TPGOP will not be able to continue to politicize Ebola and blame President Obama! Worse yet could this mean GOD approves of what is being done in America?! OOOHHH
Forbes (you should excuse the expression) put it nicely. The US seems to have attain to date an incredible 80% cure rate for a disease that was thought to be fatal 50% of the time. Hope these skills can be transmitted elsewhere.
Obama deliberately brought Ebola to ‘Murca to deflect attention from BENGHAZI!
/snark
Vinson should by now be on the mend, but Emory has not made a public statement that she has tested free of EVD. Three tests over three days seems to be the standard.
Ashoka Mukpo was admitted to the Nebraska hospital for care on 10/6 (two to four days after first symptoms) and cleared on 10/21. Nina Pham was placed in isolation within 90 minutes of her first symptoms on 10/10 and began receiving treatment as soon as her pos test was returned and yesterday her condition was upgraded from fair to good. So, I would guess that everybody would be interested in how Vinson recovered in seven days (10/13 first symptom, 10/14 in hospital and tested, specific treatment would have started after the pos test).
NBC News Virus Free
For those of us who’ve actually looked into ebola, none of this is a surprise.
Whenever there is a story in the AJC (Atlanta) about ebola, the reich-wingers come out, spittle flying everywhere.
I just post the same thing:
Run!
Panic!!
SCREAM!!!
#ConservativePride