Frequently Asked Questions

• Contact Grant County Health District, (509) 766-7960, for information about monitoring, especially if you:
  • were in an area with an Ebola outbreak, particularly if you were in contact with blood or body fluids or items that have come in contact with blood or body fluids.
  • visited a hospital or clinic where Ebola patients were being treated or you participated in burial rituals/practices.
  • had contact with wild animals or raw meat.
• Seek medical care immediately if you develop a fever (temperature of 100.4°F/ 38.0°C) and any of the following symptoms: headache, muscle pain, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, or unexplained bruising or bleeding.
• Tell your doctor about your recent travel and your symptoms before you go to the office or emergency room. Advance notice will help your doctor care for you and protect other people who may be in the  same medical setting.

• Fever (greater than 38°C or 100.4°F)
• Severe headache
• Muscle pain
• Weakness
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Abdominal (stomach) pain
• Unexplained hemorrhage (bleeding or bruising)

Symptoms may appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after exposure to Ebola, but the average is 8 to 10 days.

Recovery from Ebola depends on the patient’s immune response. Once someone recovers from Ebola, they can no longer spread the virus. However, the Ebola virus has been found in semen for up to three months. People who recover from Ebola are advised to abstain from sex or use condoms for three months.

People who recover from Ebola infection develop antibodies that last for at least 10 years.