Man With Ebola-like Symptoms Who Recently Traveled To West Africa Isolated In New York City Hospital

Mount Sinai hospital in New York City placed a man who recently traveled to a West African country in medical isolation after he came to the emergency room on Monday with a high fever and gastrointestinal trouble, which are symptomatic of the Ebola virus, reports ABC 7 News.

UPDATE 4:47 PM EDT: Mount Sinai has released this statement about the case:

"In the early-morning hours of Monday, August 4, 2014, a male patient with high fever and gastrointestinal symptoms presented at The Mount Sinai Hospital's Emergency Department in New York City. The patient had recently traveled to a West African country where Ebola has been reported. The patient has been placed in strict isolation and is undergoing medical screenings to determine the cause of his symptoms. All necessary steps are being taken to ensure the safety of all patients, visitors and staff. We will continue to work closely with federal, state and city health officials to address and monitor this case, keep the community informed and provide the best quality care to all of our patients."

ORIGINAL STORY CONTINUED:

At least 826 people have been killed and another 1,440 infected with the Ebola virus since late March of this year in the worst outbreak of the hemorrhagic fever to date. The virus has largely been contained in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, but two cases have been confirmed in Nigeria. One of those cases was a Liberian-American man who was planning to return to Minnesota in mid-August.

Dr. Kent Brantly, an American aid worker who became infected with the virus while treating patients in Liberia has been safely transported to Atlanta's Emory University Hospital for treatment at a state-of-the-art isolation unit there. U.S. officials also plan to transport his colleague Nancy Writebol, who was infected around the same time, to the same facility on Tuesday morning.

The Centers For Disease Control sent an alert to U.S. hospitals on how to identify and handle potential Ebola cases.