This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/new-ebola-case-emerges-in-sierra-leone/2016/01/15/2cf53470-bb69-11e5-85cd-5ad59bc19432_story.html

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 3 Version 4
New Ebola case emerges in Sierra Leone New Ebola case emerges in setback for Sierra Leone
(about 3 hours later)
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — Samples taken from the body of a woman who died this week in Sierra Leone tested positive for Ebola, officials said Friday, the day after the Ebola epidemic was declared over. FREETOWN, Sierra Leone — A woman who died this week in Sierra Leone tested positive for Ebola, officials said Friday, a setback for the region that comes only a day after the World Health Organization had declared the epidemic over.
The World Health Organization, which on Thursday declared an end to the deadliest Ebola outbreak ever, said the new case emerged during a 90-day period of heightened surveillance, and that Sierra Leone’s government acted rapidly. Authorities are initiating control measures to prevent further transmission, it said. WHO had warned Thursday that new Ebola cases were possible even after virus transmission was halted in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea — the three West African nations hardest hit by the epidemic that left more than 11,300 people dead.
The infected 22-year-old woman came from the Northern Kambia District and went to the Northern Tonkolili District for medical care, Francis Langoba Kellie, spokesman for the Office of National Security, said on the radio. Already 10 other flare-ups have taken place in areas where virus transmission was thought to have ended, raising new questions about WHO procedures in assessing whether an epidemic was really over.
Authorities are tracing her contacts and have dispatched teams to the area to investigate where and how she might have contracted the deadly virus, and if she might have infected others. Certain areas will be quarantined, he said. The global health body said Friday that Sierra Leone’s government was moving rapidly to contain the new threat, but it was not immediately clear how the 22-year-old woman who died may have contracted Ebola — all known transmission chains in that country had been halted back in November.
WHO declared the Ebola outbreak over after no new cases emerged in Liberia. It had been at least two weeks since Ebola had been seen in Guinea or Sierra Leone. The three countries were most affected by the epidemic that began two years ago. Francis Langoba Kellie, a spokesman for Sierra Leone’s Office of National Security, said on the radio that the woman had come from the country’s Northern Kambia District and had gone to the Northern Tonkolili District for medical care.
Authorities are tracing her contacts and have dispatched teams to the area to investigate how she might have contracted the deadly virus and if she might have infected others. Certain areas will be quarantined, he said, without elaborating.
WHO declared the latest Ebola outbreak over in Liberia on Thursday after no new cases emerged there during a 42-day waiting period. That benchmark had already been met in both Guinea and Sierra Leone.
“Our level of preparedness and response capabilities are very high and there is no cause for concern,” said Kellie. “We encourage the public to continue to practice the hygiene regulations which were in force during the period while Ebola was raging and the emergency regulations are still in force.”“Our level of preparedness and response capabilities are very high and there is no cause for concern,” said Kellie. “We encourage the public to continue to practice the hygiene regulations which were in force during the period while Ebola was raging and the emergency regulations are still in force.”
WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said: “This really reflects what we have been saying yesterday ... that there is a risk, and this outbreak is in a critical phase right now where we are moving from case management to management of risk.” WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said: “This really reflects what we have been saying yesterday ... that there is a risk, and this outbreak is in a critical phase right now, where we are moving from case management to management of risk.”
Ebola has killed more than 11,300 people, mostly in West Africa, since it emerged at the end of 2013. Ebola is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of people who are sick or the bodies of the dead.
Sierra Leone was first declared Ebola-free on Nov. 7, after nearly 4,000 people had died from the virus there. WHO says flare-up cases, such as in Liberia, “are likely the result of the virus persisting in survivors even after recovery.” Of particular concern is that Ebola can stay in the semen of some male survivors up to a year later. The WHO said Thursday that Ebola can “in rare instances, be transmitted to intimate partners.”
WHO declares Ebola transmission over when a country goes through two incubation periods — 21 days each — without a new case emerging. Countries are then placed on a 90-day heightened surveillance. WHO declares Ebola transmission over when a country goes through two incubation periods — 21 days each — without a new case emerging. Countries are then placed on a 90-day heightened surveillance. Sierra Leone was first declared Ebola-free on Nov. 7, after nearly 4,000 people had died from the virus there.
Ebola is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of people who are sick or bodies of the dead.
WHO says that flare-up cases, such as in Liberia, “are likely the result of the virus persisting in survivors even after recovery.” Of particular concern is the fact it is now known that Ebola is present in the semen of some male survivors up to a year later. The WHO said Thursday that Ebola can “in rare instances be transmitted to intimate partners.”
____
Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.
____
The story has been updated to correct that Guinea was declared Ebola-free on Dec. 29, and that the spokesman’s name is Francis Langoba Kellie. The story has been updated to correct that it had been at least two months, not two weeks, since Ebola transmission ended in Sierra Leone.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.