Return of Ebola concerning
The Ebola virus can linger in bodily tissues even after the person appears to have made a full recovery, according to experts.
Parts of the body such as the eye, central nervous system and testes can harbour the virus, which can also behave in an unpredictable way.
John Edmunds, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: “The Ebola virus can occasionally persist for some months in certain tissues within survivors.
“The risk of transmission from these individuals appears to be very low. However, with so many survivors in West Africa now, there is a risk that further outbreaks can be triggered, which is why authorities have to remain very vigilant.”
Ben Neuman, a virologist at the University of Reading, told BBC Radio Scotland he believes the outlook for Pauline Cafferkey is good.
He told the Good Morning Scotland programme: “The nice news here is that she’s beaten the virus once so she can probably beat it again.
“The odds are that she actually has inherited a lucky set of genes and these are probably what protected her the first time and probably what will keep her safe the second time, regardless of any treatment. I think the outlook’s good.”
He said...