Please ignore 'Ebola in India' headlines; they are alarmist

“Cured in Liberia, man tests positive for Ebola in Delhi” - says the headline of a major newspaper on Tuesday. It’s followed by a sub-headline which says this: “Quarantined; traces found only in Semen”. How alarmist could be this? The report is about a man who returned from Ebola-hit Liberia with a certificate that he had been successfully treated for the disease and is now free of the virus. The young man obviously had suffered from Ebola and was lucky enough to survive. The heath authorities at the airport were right in locating him and testing him. Reportedly, he was tested twice at the airport health facility and was found to be negative for the virus. However, they found that his semen contained the virus. [caption id=“attachment_1810431” align=“alignleft” width=“380” class=" “]  Representational image. AFP[/caption] The curious question is why did the authorities subject him to a semen test when it was obvious that it would contain the virus because he recovered from Ebola only recently. According to WHO, “men who have recovered from the disease can still transmit the virus through their semen for up to 7 weeks after recovery from illness.” The authorities in Delhi haven’t found anything alarming because a man with an Ebola treatment certificate would have certainly carried the virus in his semen for about three months. Were they retroactively ascertaining that he had the virus? And for what? In countries where Ebola is prevalent presently, all the men who have been successfully treated for the disease are counselled about the high possibility of transmission of the virus to their partners through sex. Along with supplements and medicines for recuperation, they are also given a giant box of condoms to prevent sexual transmission. None of the Ebola prevention and control guidelines suggest testing semen for men. The test is done on blood and it looks for antibodies, antigen and even the virus itself. By testing the semen of the Liberia-returned Ebola survivor, the health authorities have gone overboard and by informing the media about the test result, they have created unnecessary alarm. The implication of the news, particularly the misleading headlines, is that Ebola has reached India. Indians can breathe easy. There is no risk of transmission to the general public if the man is appropriately advised to strictly avoid unprotected sex. Excessive fear and hype associated with diseases often lead to violations of rights and privacy during periods of epidemics. We have seen this in AIDS, SARS and H1N1. In this case, it’s surprising that the man agreed to give a sample of his semen when it was not required. Ebola is a highly contagious viral disease and spreads through body fluids such as blood, saliva, sweat and vomit. It has a very high mortality rate with recent epidemics in West Africa recording upto 90 percent of deaths. The only way to control the disease is prevention by protecting oneself from contact with infected (or deceased) persons by diligently adhering to international protocols. Even with the best of protective gear, there have been deaths of healthcare workers, most probably caused by some breach of the protocols.