Ebola is in America: Dallas Man is Diagnosed With Disease

Federal health officials on Tuesday confirmed the first case of Ebola diagnosed in the U.S., a male patient who recently traveled from Liberia to Dallas and a sign of the far-reaching impact of the out-of-control epidemic in West Africa.

The unidentified patient was critically ill and has been in isolation at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, center, since Sunday, officials said. Health authorities have begun tracking down family and friends who may have had close contact with the patient and could be at risk for becoming ill. But officials said there are no other suspected cases in Texas.

The man traveled from Liberia on September 19 and arrived in the United States on the next day, without showing symptoms of the deadly virus, CDC Director Tom Frieden told reporters.

The patient, Frieden said, started to show signs of the virus September 24 and then 'sought care' on the 26th, and two days later the patient was admitted to the hospital and isolated. Frieden said there was no risk to anyone on the airplane because the patient had no symptoms at the time of the flight.

The hospital reportedly gave the man antibiotics but he returned critically ill two days later. Texas Health Presbyterian is reportedly internally investigating the misdiagnosis.

The Ebola virus, right, has killed more than 3,000 people across West Africa. Ebola symptoms can include fever, muscle pain, vomiting and bleeding, and can appear as long as 21 days after exposure to the virus. Ebola is not contagious until symptoms begin, and it takes close contact with bodily fluids to spread.

Mailonline