US doctor 'recovered' from Ebola back in hospital isolation with 'respiratory illness' not virus

| WTF News |

Massachusetts doctor Richard Scara, who was successfully treated for Ebola he contracted in Africa, is back in the hospital with what is said to be a respiratory infection, but doctors say it is not a recurrence of the virus. The disconnect in information has been unsettling to some given the trend of presumed dead ebola victims ‘coming back to life’ after another incident was caught by ABC News earlier this week.

CBS
Sacra, 51, went to the emergency room at a Boston-area hospital Saturday morning to have an x-ray performed. He was exhibiting a persistent cough and a low-grade fever, and feared he might be developing pneumonia, according to a statement released by SIM USA, the missionary organization he volunteered with while in Liberia.

He was transferred to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester for observation. Doctors have been in contact with health care staff at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, where he was treated for Ebola and released on Sept. 25.

Doctors have offered the reasoning that Ebola left Sacra’s immune system critically weakened, a concept supported by studied effects of the virus.

WCVB
“Even though the likelihood of Dr. Sacra having a relapse of Ebola is extremely low, doctors will run tests to be 100 percent sure,” said Dr. Phil Smith, medical director of the Biocontainment Unit at The Nebraska Medical Center.

“Because of his recent battle with the Ebola virus, his immune system is compromised,” said Smith, who treated Sacra for Ebola. “The symptoms he has are indicative of a respiratory illness and are not those of someone suffering from Ebola.

Smith said the public shouldn’t be concerned that his Ebola has returned.

“Dr. Sacra is in stable condition and being monitored carefully. We’re waiting for final test results from the CDC which we expect to receive late Monday,” said Dr. Robert Finberg of UMass Memorial Medical Center. “We think it is highly unlikely that he has Ebola.”