Ebola Victim Amber Vinson Now Free of Virus, Family Says
The Texas nurse who contracted Ebola while caring for Liberian national Thomas Eric Duncan is now Ebola-free and will be transferred out of isolation.
Amber Vinson, 29, contracted the virus in Texas and was transferred to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, where she was able to receive specialized treatment. Officials were unable to detect the virus in Vinson's system, which is a sign that she might be cured of the ailment. However, doctors generally perform at least two blood tests per day in order to completely rule-out the possibility of having the deadly virus. No one has said how many tests Vinson has had.
"We all know that further treatment will be necessary as Amber continues to regain strength, but these latest developments have truly answered prayers and bring our family one step closer to reuniting with her at home," her mother, Debra Berry, said in a statement.
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Emory University will not release any further information about Vinson's status or how she was treated for the disease.
Vinson's family recently defended her against accusations that she was reckless when she flew on a commercial flight with a slight temperature, possibly exposing others to the serious virus.
"The past several days have been the most trying our family has collectively ever faced," they said. "We remain intensely prayerful and optimistic about Amber's condition and the treatment she is currently receiving. She has not and would not knowingly expose herself or anyone else [to the virus]. Suggestions that she ignored any of the physician and government-provided protocols recommended to her are patently untrue and hurtful."
Vinson was the second nurse to contract the disease after helping treat Duncan, who died from the virus on Oct. 8. Duncan traveled to the U.S. after having direct contact with a neighbor in Liberia who died from Ebola. Nina Pham was the first person to contract the virus in the U.S., and was transported to NIH hospital in Maryland, where her condition has been upgraded from fair to good. It's unclear what treatment she has received, and her status was temporarily downgraded from good to fair due to exhaustion after being transported from Dallas to Bethesda, but she has seemingly made a turn for the better.
