NFL Consultants Send Newsletter On Ebola To All Teams

(Reuters) - The NFL's infectious disease consultants, in a newsletter sent to team doctors and trainers outlining the primary facts of the Ebola virus, said they do not currently recommend screening for possible contact with infected patients.

The newsletter, to be shared with players and staff, was written by the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network and sent to all 32 National Football League teams earlier this week, the league said on Thursday.

"At this point we do not advise screening of players or staff to make sure that they have not had close contact with anyone who traveled to or from areas where Ebola is now endemic," said the letter from Dr. Daniel Sexton and Dr.Deverick Anderson.

"We do recommend that medical personnel educate their players and staff about the need to inform club medical personnel in the unlikely event that they actually have such contact."

At least 4,493 people, predominantly in West Africa, have died in the worst Ebola outbreak since the disease was identified in 1976, but cases in the United States and Europe have been limited.

The virus can cause fever, bleeding, vomiting and diarrhea, and spreads through contact with bodily fluids.

Two Dallas nurses treating an infected man have contracted Ebola and are being treated for the virus.