WASHINGTON, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. government department in charge of medical research said Saturday it is expected to care for an American doctor who has been exposed to the Ebola virus in West Africa in the coming days.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) said in a statement that the patient, an American physician who was volunteering services in an Ebola treatment unit in Sierra Leone, will be admitted to the agency's Clinical Center for observation and to enroll in a clinical study.
"Out of an abundance of caution, the patient will be admitted to the NIH Clinical Center's special clinical studies unit that is specifically designed to provide high-level isolation capabilities and is staffed by infectious diseases and critical care specialists," the NIH said.
No additional details about the patient are available at this time, it added.
Four American aid workers have already been airlifted back to the U.S. from West Africa. The first two, Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol, recovered about one month ago after receiving a promising experimental drug called ZMapp that had not previously been formally tested in humans.
A third American, physician Richard Sacra, was released from hospital Thursday. He received a research drug called TKM-Ebola, which inhibits the virus's ability to replicate. He was also treated with plasma from Ebola survivor Kent Brantly, along with other supportive care.
A fourth unnamed American described as a medical worker remains hospitalized at the Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia.
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