Ebola test underway for Gatineau, Que., child in isolation

A young girl from Gatineau, Que., is in isolation after feeling sick upon returning from visiting family in Sierra Leone, one of the west African countries hard hit by this year’s Ebola outbreak.

Dr. Jean-Pierre Courteau, medical officer of health for the Outaouais region, said in an interview with Radio-Canada they’re being cautious because of her symptoms but couldn’t go into detail.

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He said they don’t believe she came into contact with anyone who had Ebola while in Sierra Leone.

"The criteria that is missing is the history of contact with an Ebola case or contact with sick people in health facilities in Africa," Dr. Courteau said.

The girl is in isolation at an undisclosed hospital after coming with her family to a Gatineau emergency room earlier in the day Friday with flu-like symptoms.

There is no risk of contamination for medical staff and other people there, Dr. Courteau said.

He said testing is being done in Winnipeg and results should be known by Saturday afternoon.

No confirmed Canadian cases

Ebola is a viral disease spread by bodily fluids that causes fever, muscle pain, intense weakness and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

There is no cure and no licensed treatment or vaccine, so doctors manage cases by isolating patients and trying to help their immune systems fight it.

More than 1,500 people have been killed in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria​, with the WHO warning that it could eventually infect 20,000 people.

There have been no confirmed cases in Canada. A few people placed under quarantine on the chance they contracted the virus later tested negative.