The health departments in the West Central Region of Ohio have established a hotline number you can call and get correct answers to the questions you may have about the Ebola virus, Bill Wharton, public information, Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County, said Thursday afternoon.
People in the region -- Champaign, Clark, Darke, Greene, Miami, Montgomery, Preble, and Shelby counties -- can call 937-225-6217 from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
According to Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County and other health care agencies, the only way you can be infected is through direct contact with someone who has been infected and is showing symptoms. The likelihood of that situation for most U.S. citizens is very remote, according to the agency. An infected person can't spread the disease until symptoms appear. The time from exposure to when signs or symptoms of the disease appear (the incubation period) is two to 21 days, but the average time is eight to 10 days.
Signs of Ebola include fever (higher than 101.5°F) and symptoms like severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain, or unexplained bleeding or bruising.
To protect yourself:
- DO wash your hands often with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Do NOT touch the blood or body fluids (like urine, feces, saliva,vomit, sweat, and semen) of people who are sick.
- Do NOT handle items that may have come in contact with a sic kperson's blood or body fluids, like clothes, bedding, needles, or medical equipment.
- Do NOT touch the body of someone who has died of Ebola.
If you have traveled to an area with an Ebola outbreak or had close contact with a person sick with Ebola, you may be at risk if you:
- Had direct contact with blood or body fluids or items that came into contact with blood or body fluids from a person with Ebola.
- Touched bats or nonhuman primates (like apes or monkeys) or blood, fluids, or raw meat prepared from these animals.
- Went into hospitals where Ebola patients were being treated and had close contact with the patients.
- Touched the body of a person who died of Ebola. You should check for signs and symptoms of Ebola for 21 days.
- Take your temperature every morning and evening.
- Watch for other Ebola symptoms, like severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain, or unexplained bleeding or bruising.
- Call your doctor even if you do not have symptoms. The doctor can evaluate your exposure level and any symptoms and consult with public health authorities to determine if actions are needed. During the time you are watching for signs and symptoms, you can continue your normal activities, including going to work. If you get sick after you come back from an area with an Ebola outbreak, tell your doctor about your recent travel to West Africa or contact with a person who was sick with Ebola and your symptoms. Call before you go to your doctor's office or emergency room. That will help the doctor or emergency room care for you and protect other people who may be in the office or ER.
While Ebola is much more lethal than the seasonal flu, now is the time for all individuals older than 6 months to get their flu shots. The early signs of Ebola are similar to the early signs of flu.
There is no FDA-approved vaccine available for Ebola. Experimental vaccines and treatments are under development, but they have not yet been fully tested for safety or effectiveness.
Ebola information is available at any time by visiting PHDMC.org.
