Laboratory tests on a man found dead in Donegal have proven negative for the Ebola virus.
The body of Dessie Quinn, 43, was found in a house yesterday morning.
He was originally from the Mountcharles area, outside of Donegal town, and had returned to Ireland in recent weeks after working in Sierra Leone where there is an Ebola virus outbreak.
It is understood Mr Quinn had been getting treatment for suspected malaria.
His body was removed to Letterkenny General Hospital for tests.
The Health Service Executive said infection procedures, which had been put in place at the hospital as a precautionary measure, will now be stepped down.
The company Mr Quinn worked for issued a statement this morning expressing its sympathies to his family.
KN Network Services said he was an extremely hard working and valued member of staff and will be missed by everyone who worked with him.
The company said it was liaising with his work colleagues from Sierra Leone.
It said it has had ongoing contact with the HSE and all its remaining staff in Sierra Leone were removed from the country last Saturday and were screened for Ebola on their departure.
There were no positive tests or signs of symptoms for the disease, a company spokesman said.
Mr Quinn's partner and five-year-old son live in Dublin and he was in Co Donegal visiting family and friends when he died.
A consultant at the Infectious Diseases Department of the Mater Hospital and member of the Emerging Viral Threats Group with the Department of Health has said there is no immediate risk to health workers who may come into contact with someone who may have Ebola.
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One Dr Gerard Sheehan said protocols are in place to quickly establish if someone presenting to a GP or hospital has Ebola.
He said one of the first steps is to confirm where the person has been. If that includes one of the four countries of concern plans are put into action.
Dr Sheehan said most of the infectious risk is at the later stages of the disease so there is very little risk to healthcare professionals that assess people who present at GPs or hospitals.
He said close personal contact is needed for transmission.
He said the virus is not transmitted in the air and so even if healthcare professionals were face-to-face with someone with Ebola, the likelihood of them contracting it is very low.
The priest who gave the last rites said his family did not know he was at the centre of an investigation into a suspected Ebola case.
Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Sean O'Rourke, Fr Adrian Gavigan said the first time the family became aware of the investigation was by learning of it via the media.
"When I heard that, the devastation of that news, I went down to the family to see how they were getting on, how they were coping with that, never mind the devastation of losing their son and brother. This was just another dimension.
"And that was the first that they knew, basically the nation knew before the family knew that this was going to be investigated."
In a statement, the HSE insisted it maintained close contact with the Quinn family following Mr Quinn's death and only issued their statement yesterday on the back of media reports.
"The HSE was in contact with some family members from the outset of the tragic situation yesterday," a spokeswoman said.
"The story broke in the media just before 6pm yesterday at which point the HSE had to make a public statement on the matter, given the urgency and nature of a public health issue such as this.
"The HSE has expressed its sincere condolences to the family for their loss."
The executive also said it was important to note that it had at no point identified or named any individual and that this was done by media late last night.
Any comment made by the HSE sought to protect the confidentiality of the individual and their family.
The HSE statement did not say whether the deceased individual was male or female, or what part of Africa they had returned from.
Meanwhile, in a statement this evening the World Health Organistation has said that the fight against Ebola will take 'months'
The WHO added that the epidemic in West Africa has led to 1,427 deaths out of 2,615 known cases.
Earlier, the WHO said the scale of the world's worst Ebola outbreak had been concealed by families hiding infected loved ones in their homes and the existence of "shadow zones" that medics cannot enter.
Earlier, the WHO said the scale of the world's worst Ebola outbreak had been concealed by families hiding infected loved ones in their homes and the existence of "shadow zones" that medics cannot enter.
It is due to issue a global strategy plan towards the end of next week in Geneva
The HSE has confirmed it is currently assessing a suspected case of Ebola in Donegal, after the discovery of a man's body.
The public health department was made aware earlier today of the remains of a man, discovered early this morning, who had recently travelled to the one of the areas in Africa affected by the current Ebola virus disease outbreak.
www.independent.ie/irish-news/health/hse-investigating-suspected-case-of-ebola-30526820.html
www.independent.ie/irish-news/health/hse-investigating-suspected-case-of-ebola-30526820.html
The man's body has been isolated to minimise the potential spread of any possible virus, the HSE said in a statement.
"Blood samples have been sent for laboratory testing to confirm whether or not this individual had contracted Ebola virus disease," the HSE said.
Until a diagnosis is confirmed, and as a precautionary measure, the individual’s remains will stay in the mortuary at Letterkenny General Hospital pending the laboratory results which are expected late tomorrow.
"The risk of transmission of any disease is considered to be extremely low," the HSE said.
"As a precautionary measure, appropriate infection control procedures are being put in place in the community and at the mortuary pending the outcome of laboratory tests."
Dr Darina O’Flanagan, Head of the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre, said: “In general, the risk of contracting Ebola virus disease is extremely low and would involve very close personal contact with the infected individual or their body fluids for there to be any risk at all.”
“We await the outcome of the laboratory tests before we will know whether or not this individual had contracted Ebola virus disease. The appropriate public health guidelines are being followed at every stage in this process as a precaution.”
Tests are being carried out for the Ebola virus and isolation procedures have been put in place after a death in Co Donegal.
It is understood the deceased had been working in Sierra Leone and that a number of colleagues had contracted the virus there.
While the cause of death is unknown the HSE is carrying tests to see whether it was due to exposure to Ebola.
In a statement, the HSE said it was currently assessing a suspected case of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Donegal.
“The public health department was made aware earlier today of the remains of an individual, discovered early this morning, who had recently travelled to the one of the areas in Africa affected by the current Ebola virus disease outbreak,” it said.
“The appropriate national guidelines, in line with international best practice, are being followed by the public health team dealing with the situation. This means that the body of the deceased has been isolated to minimise the potential spread of any possible virus.”
The statement said blood samples had been sent for laboratory testing to confirm whether or not this individual had contracted Ebola virus disease.
“Until a diagnosis is confirmed, and as a precautionary measure, the individual’s remains will stay in the mortuary pending the laboratory results which are expected late tomorrow.”
The HSE said the risk of transmission of any disease was considered to be “extremely low”.
But aAs a precautionary measure, appropriate infection control procedures are being put in place in the community and at the mortuary pending the outcome of laboratory tests.
Dr Darina O’Flanagan, head of the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre, said: “In general, the risk of contracting Ebola virus disease is extremely low and would involve very close personal contact with the infected individual or their body fluids for there to be any risk at all.”
“We await the outcome of the laboratory tests before we will know whether or not this individual had contracted Ebola virus disease. The appropriate public health guidelines are being followed at every stage in this process as a precaution.”
The World Health Organization said yesterday that 2,473 people have been infected and 1,350 have died since the Ebola outbreak was identified in remote southeasternGuinea in March. Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria are the countries affected by the outbreak.
Ebola was recorded in Spain last week when a Spanish priest evacuated from Liberia died of the illness.
The disease is one of the deadliest known to humanity. It has no proven cure and there is no vaccine. The rigorous use of quarantine is needed to prevent its spread, as well as high standards of hygiene for anyone who might come into contact with it.
The South African government said today that due to fears over the spread of the Ebola virus it was banning travellers from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone from entering the country, apart from its own citizens.
Travellers from Nigeria, where there is a much smaller outbreak, will be allowed entry.
South African citizens returning from the three highest risk countries will be permitted entry but will be subject to a stricter screening process, a government statement said.
A senior health official in Togo said today that two suspected cases, including a sailor from the Philippines, were being tested for the virus.
Three African doctors, also treated with ZMapp in Liberia, have shown remakable signs of improvement, Liberia’s Information Minister Lewis Brown said on Tuesday.
*Two US patients discharged
*Two US patients discharged
Two US patients receiving treatment for the deadly Ebola virus have been discharged from Emory University Hospital in Atlanta.
Kent Brantly, a doctor who fell ill with the virus while working in Liberia, has recovered and was discharged from hospital today.
Speaking at a news conference Mr Brantly said he was “forever thankful to God” for sparing his life.
The president of the Christian missionary group for which Dr Brantly worked in Liberia, Samaritan's Purse, hailed his "courageous spirit" as he battled the virus that has killed 1,350 people in west Africa since March.
Aid worker Nancy Writebol has also been discharged from the same hospital where she was receiving treatment for Ebola.
Ms Writebol has tested clear of the virus and is said to be with her husband at an undisclosed location.
Following their release Dr Bruce Ribner from Emory's Infectious Disease Unit said both workers pose no health risks to the public.
Meanwhile, South Africa has issued a ban on non-citizens travelling from three west African countries worst affected by Ebola.
A health ministry statement declared "a total travel ban for all non-citizens travelling from these high risk countries," referring to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
South Africans returning home from these areas will undergo strict screening, it added.
Authorities also barred non-essential travel to the three countries.
South Africa has so far been Ebola-free despite two scares in as many weeks: a South African man returning from Liberia and a Guinean woman. Both tested negative.
Johannesburg is a major hub for air travel between southern Africa and the rest of the continent.
Keywords: ebola
Additional reporting: Reuters
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