New case rekindles Ebola fears in Turkey

A 34-year-old citizen has been quarantined in a southeastern Turkish town, rekindling fears of a possible case of the Ebola virus.

The patient, who works in Uganda and was visiting his hometown, was taken to an isolated room at the infection service of Çukurova University Balcalı Hospital in the Osmaniye province, Anadolu Agency reported Aug. 15.

Dr. Yeşim Taşova, the chief physician of the hospital, said the patient, identified as İ.K., was hospitalized on the night of Aug. 14, after having fever and severe diarrhea caused by an upper respiratory tract infection.

“The patient has been examined. He’s fine now and has no fever,” Taşova said, stressing all related authorities have been informed and the results of a blood analysis is expected to soon confirm or deny the suspicion of Ebola.

A Nigerian passenger, who arrived in Turkey early Aug. 12, had created panic when she became ill onboard while flying from Lagos to Istanbul. She was diagnosed with Malaria, not Ebola and was hence able to leave Turkey.

Turkish authorities are on high alert as the virus keeps spreading in Africa. A boy who was travelling with his parents from Nairobi to Istanbul was taken to a doctor due to fever and vomiting after their plane landed in Istanbul. He was allowed to fly in transit to another country after officials of the Directorate General of Health for Border and Coastal Areas approved of the decision.

Suspected Ebola patient leaves Turkey after being diagnosed with Malaria

A Nigerian woman, who was taken to the hospital on the suspicion being inflicted by the Ebola virus, left Turkey after leaving the hospital Aug. 14, as doctors diagnosed her with Malaria. 

The 34-year-old woman, Stella Omorowa, created panic when she fell ill to fever and vomited during a Turkish Airlines flight from Lagos to Istanbul on Aug. 12. She was taken to the hospital along with her 4-year-old son, prompting authorities to take measures against a possible case of the Ebola virus.  

Following medical tests, Omorowa was diagnosed with Malaria, which is also a common disease in African countries. She left Turkey for Barcelona, as Istanbul was a connecting stop for her flight. 
Omorowa said she tried to explain she did not have the Ebola virus at the hospital. 

“It was later determined that I contracted Malaria following the examinations. I’ve started the treatment for Malaria,” she said before leaving the country. “I am going to Barcelona now. I am happy.”

Ömer Sarılar, the manager of Haseki Training and Research Hospital, where Omorowa received treatment, said doctors diagnosed her with Malaria within six hours of being taken to the hospital. 

“It is said in [medical] literature that Ebola and Malaria do not occur at the same time. Despite that, we took a blood sample and sent it to a virology laboratory in Germany. In 24-hours it was determined that the patient did not have the Ebola virus,” he said. 

The virus is spread by direct contact with blood or bodily fluids from an infected person. Ebola cannot be spread like the flu through casual contact or breathing the same air as someone who is infected. 

The Ebola virus has killed 1,013 people and infected another 1,848, as the latest data from the World Health Organization shows.

Ebola Virus in Istanbul

2 Nigerian passengers put under medical supervision on Ebola suspicion

Two Nigerian passengers from a Turkish Airlines (THY) flight traveling from Lagos, Nigeria, to İstanbul on Tuesday morning have been put under medical supervision on suspicions that they have the Ebola virus.

According to media reports, a female passenger and her child were put under medical supervision after they showed symptoms of fever and vomiting at İstanbul Atatürk Airport. The passengers were escorted off the plane by medical teams from the Directorate General of Health for Border and Coastal Areas and were transferred to a nearby hospital via ambulance. The medical teams suspect that the two passengers are carrying the Ebola virus.

The Ebola outbreak was first reported in February in Guinea, followed by its appearance in Liberia and Sierra Leone. More than 900 people have died, with the death toll rising daily. With the deaths in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria, the total number of deaths has reached 826 out of the 1,440 incidents of infection since June 30, according to the latest data issued by the World Health Organization (WHO), which recently declared the Ebola outbreak in West Africa to be an international public health emergency that requires an extraordinary response to stop its spread.

Ebola has a fatality rate of up to 90 percent, and there is no vaccine or known cure. The virus initially causes fever, headaches, muscle pain, headaches, sore throats, conjunctivitis and a general feeling of weakness, before moving into more severe phases of vomiting, diarrhea and hemorrhages and impaired kidney and liver function, with the final stages resulting in internal and external bleeding. Ebola is thought to only be transmitted when patients are displaying severe symptoms.