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Doctor Being Treated for Ebola in Omaha Dies Doctor Being Treated for Ebola in Omaha Dies
(about 1 hour later)
A surgeon who contracted Ebola while working in Sierra Leone, Dr. Martin Salia, died Monday while being treated in a biocontainment center in Omaha.A surgeon who contracted Ebola while working in Sierra Leone, Dr. Martin Salia, died Monday while being treated in a biocontainment center in Omaha.
“It is with an extremely heavy heart that we share this news,” said Dr. Philip Smith, the medical director of the biocontainment unit at the Nebraska Medical Center. “Dr. Salia was extremely critical when he arrived here, and unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we weren’t able to save him.” “We used the maximum amount of supportive care and every advanced technique available in an effort to save his life,” said Dr. Jeffrey P. Gold, chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
Dr. Salia, who is a citizen of Sierra Leone but lives in Maryland, had been working as a general surgeon at Kissy United Methodist Hospital in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown. It was not clear where he had come in contact with Ebola patients. Five other doctors in Sierra Leone have contracted Ebola; all have died. “We are reminded today that even though this was the best possible place for a patient with this virus to be, that in the very advanced stages, even the most modern techniques that we have at our disposal are not enough to help these patients once they reach the critical threshold,” Dr. Gold said.
A hospital spokesman, Taylor Wilson, said that Dr. Salia died about 4 a.m. Monday. He came down with symptoms of the virus on Nov. 6 but initially tested negative. He tested positive a week ago. Dr. Salia, who is a citizen of Sierra Leone but lives in Maryland, had been working as a general surgeon at Kissy United Methodist Hospital in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown. It was not clear where he had come in contact with Ebola patients, though hospital officials said he worked in an area with many Ebola cases. Five other doctors in Sierra Leone have contracted Ebola; all have died.
In a statement, the hospital said that Dr. Salia was suffering from advanced symptoms of Ebola, including kidney and respiratory failure, when he arrived on Saturday. Treatments, the statement said, included kidney dialysis and ventilation as well as a blood plasma transfusion from a patient who has recovered from Ebola and an experimental drug, ZMapp. A hospital spokesman, Taylor Wilson, said that Dr. Salia died about 4 a.m. Monday. He came down with symptoms of the virus on Nov. 6 but initially tested negative. It is not uncommon for people tested in the early stages of the disease to get a false negative. His symptoms persisted and he tested positive a week ago.
“As we have learned, early treatment with these patients is essential,” Dr. Smith. said. “In Dr. Salia’s case, his disease was already extremely advanced by the time he came here for treatment.” Dr. Salia arrived in Omaha on Saturday, 13 days into the course of the disease. His kidneys had already failed and he was breathing with great difficulty, said Dr. Daniel W. Johnson, the director of critical care at the Omaha hospital.
“Within the first few hours of his arrival we started running continuous dialysis and within the first 12 hours he had progressed to complete respiratory failure, requiring intubation and mechanical ventilation,” Dr. Johnson said. “Shortly after that he developed severely low blood pressure. He progressed to the point of cardiac arrest and we weren’t able to get him through this.”
Dr. Salia also received a blood plasma transfusion from a patient who has recovered from Ebola and an experimental drug, ZMapp, provided by the manufacturer, hospital officials said.
“As we have learned, early treatment with these patients is essential,” Dr. Philip Smith, the medical director of the biocontainment unit at the Nebraska Medical Center, said. “In Dr. Salia’s case, his disease was already extremely advanced by the time he came here for treatment.”
Dr. Salia’s body will be cremated; an autopsy is considered too dangerous to perform, but tissue samples from the body will be analyzed by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Hospital officials singled out nurses for their work, noting that they had much more contact with the patient. “I want to thank our local heroes who took care of a global hero these past few days,” the chief nursing officer, Rosanna Morris, said.
Dr. Salia is the second patient to die of Ebola in the United States, both of whom contracted the disease while in West Africa. The first, Thomas Eric Duncan, died in early October at a Dallas hospital after coming to the United States from Liberia. Dr. Salia was the third Ebola patient who was treated in Omaha and the 10th known patient in the United States. Two patients — the nurses Nina Pham and Amber Joy Vinson — were infected while treating Mr. Duncan in Dallas.Dr. Salia is the second patient to die of Ebola in the United States, both of whom contracted the disease while in West Africa. The first, Thomas Eric Duncan, died in early October at a Dallas hospital after coming to the United States from Liberia. Dr. Salia was the third Ebola patient who was treated in Omaha and the 10th known patient in the United States. Two patients — the nurses Nina Pham and Amber Joy Vinson — were infected while treating Mr. Duncan in Dallas.
The White House, in a statement, said Dr. Salia’s death was “another reminder of the human toll of this disease and of the continued imperative to tackle this epidemic on the frontlines.” The White House, in a statement, said Dr. Salia’s death was “another reminder of the human toll of this disease and of the continued imperative to tackle this epidemic on the front lines.”