Notification for foreign students upon coming from west Africa and Congo, from areas stricken by fevers caused by the ebola virus

Some west African countries (Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria) and Kongo have currently announced Epidemics caused by the ebola virus.

What is ebola: a serious infectious illness that ends with the death of the patient in more than half the cases.

How is it transmitted: It is transmitted through direct contact with blood or with other body fluids (such as urine, saliva) from people, dead or alive, afflicted by ebola. The illness is also transmitted through sexual intercourse with a person who suffered from the illness, even up to 3 months after recovering. It is also possible to be infected by an originator of ebola through contact with wild animals (monkeys, antelopes, bats). The illness is not transmitted through the air. The period from the infection to the outbreak of the symptoms is 2-21 days.

What to do when returning from a high-risk area: if you are travelling from a high-risk area, monitor your state of health for a period of 21 days. In the event of any febrile illness, inexplicable tiredness, muscle pain, headaches, a sore throat, diarrhoea, vomiting and subsequent bleeding it is necessary to rule out the suspicion that it could be due to this illness. Do not leave your flat and contact your doctor or medical emergency service (dial 155) by phone immediately.

8 September 2014

MUDr. Vladimír Valenta, Ph.D., Chief Public Health Officer of the Czech Republic