5-year-old New York boy under Ebola observation after returning from Guinea

A five-year-old boy is reportedly under observation at a New York hospital for possible Ebola symptoms. ABC News said the boy had returned to the U.S. from Guinea at the weekend. He was taken to hospital after experiencing a temperature of 39.5C (103F), the report said. However, he has not been tested for the virus and is not under quarantine, ABC said, citing officials with New York City’s health department. The New York Post reported that the boy had been vomiting and was transported from his home in the Bronx by emergency medical workers.

The US must treat returning health care workers with dignity and humanity.

Dr Craig Spencer

If confirmed, it would be the second case to be diagnosed in America’s largest city, after doctor Craig Spencer tested positive last week after returning home from treating Ebola patients in Guinea. Dr Spencer, who went to the African country with the Doctors Without Borders humanitarian group, is also being kept in isolation at Bellevue Hospital. In New Jersey, an American nurse who treated Ebola patients in Sierra Leone is suing the state for being quarantined despite testing negative for the disease. Kaci Hickox claims her treatment puts her under physical and psychological stress, and violates her human rights.

Americas five year old boy