A 25-year-old man, just back from the Congo, is placed in isolation in Queensland
A leading infectious diseases physician said a man taken to a Queensland hospital suffering a suspected case of Ebola is just as likely to be suffering from malaria.
A Queensland ambulance spokeswoman confirmed to Guardian Australia that a 25-year-old man had contacted paramedics on Thursday morning after returning from a trip to the Congo, and he was now undergoing tests in Gold Coast University Hospital.
But associate professor Allen Cheng from Monash University’s department of epidemiology and preventive medicine said the Congo was not where the primary outbreak of Ebola had occurred, and that malaria was much more likely.
Malaria, spread by mosquitoes, typically has symptoms including high fevers, shaking chills, and flu-like illness, which were similar to the initial symptoms of Ebola, Cheng said.
The bulk of Ebola cases were coming from Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.
“The Congo is not where all the action is, there are some cases there but it’s a long way from the outbreak,” Cheng said.
“Ebola can look like a lot of other diseases and that’s first thing I’d be thinking of, that it could be malaria.
“I’m sure the Gold Coast hospital is testing for both, and they are right to be taking every precaution but I wouldn’t be panicking.”
Cheng was among experts to warn doctors last month that Australian hospital staff should not to become so concerned about detecting cases of the Ebola virus that they failed to recognise other concerning, but more common, diseases in their patients.
Gold Coast Health confirmed the patient had been put into isolation.
“Gold Coast Heath has processes in place to safely manage such circumstances,” a spokeswoman said. “Universal infection control procedures are in place and there is limited risk to patients and staff.
“Further information will be provided as clinical assessments are completed.”