Ebola in the UK: Woman tested for virus in Northampton

A woman suspected of having Ebola is being tested for the virus at a hospital in Northampton. 

 

At present, no details have been revealed about the identity of the woman or how she might have contracted the disease.

 

According to Public Health England, it is very unlikely she is suffering from Ebola, but everything is being done to protect public health, just in case.

 

"Ebola is considered unlikely but testing is being done as a precaution, as is our usual practice in these circumstances,” it said in a statement. 

 

"Based on the evidence-based risk assessment, we are confident that all appropriate actions are being taken to protect the public's health."

 

However, when a spokesman for Northampton General Hospital was questioned, it became unclear whether the woman was being held in isolation.  "She will be in isolation if she is suspected of having the illness,” he said. 

 

The Ebola epidemic, which has killed over 7,000 people since it broke out in Guinea in December 2013, has mostly been contained within west Africa. However, a few cases have arisen in the UK, including nurse Pauline Cafferkey, who contracted Ebola while working for the charity Save the Children in Sierra Leone. 

 

She is currently being treated in an isolation unit at the Royal free Hospital in London and is reportedly making a good recovery. 

 

There is no cure or approved vaccine for the virus, although GlaxoSmithKline and Johnson &Johnson are speeding up human trials of vaccines.