Symptoms & Signs
During the incubation period, which can last about 1 week, symptoms include:
- Arthritis
- Backache (low-back pain)
- Chills
- Diarrhea
- Fatigue
- Fever
- Headache
- Malaise
- Nausea
- Sore throat
- Vomiting
Late symptoms include:
- Bleeding from eyes, ears, and nose
- Bleeding from the mouth and rectum (gastrointestinal bleeding)
- Depression
- Eye inflammation (conjunctivitis)
- Genital swelling (labia and scrotum)
- Increased feeling of pain in skin
- Rash over the entire body that often contains blood (hemorrhagic)
- Roof of mouth looks red
- Seizures, coma, delirium
As many as 90% of patients die from the disease. Patients usually die from shock rather than from blood loss.
Diagnosis & Tests
There may be signs and symptoms of:
- Coma
- Disseminated intravascular coagulation
- Shock
Tests used to diagnose Ebola fever include:
- CBC
- Electrolytes
- Tests of how well the blood will clot (coagulation studies)
- Tests to show whether someone has been exposed to the Ebola virus
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Ebola hemorrhagic fever : Overview, Causes, & Risk Factors
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Ebola hemorrhagic fever : Symptoms & Signs, Diagnosis & Tests
-
Ebola hemorrhagic fever : Treatment
Review Date : 9/3/2008
Reviewed By : D. Scott Smith, M.D., MSc, DTM&H, Chief of Infectious Disease & Geographic Medicine, Kaiser Redwood City, CA & Adjunct Assistant Professor, Stanford University.� Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
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