A woman taken to a Dublin hospital with a suspected case of the Ebola virus has been declared free of the disease.
The woman, resident in the west of the city, was rushed by ambulance to the National Isolation Unit at the Mater Hospital.
A police escort accompanied the ambulance and roads were closed as she was rushed to the hospital after displaying symptoms of Ebola.
But Ireland’s Health Service Authority (HSE) has since announced that the woman is not at risk from the deadly virus.
The Irish Times reports on a statement from the HSE which said: “The patient was considered a low risk for the Ebola Virus but this has now been ruled out.“All appropriate infection control procedures were taken by healthcare personnel at the hospital.
“The woman is receiving appropriate treatment at the Mater Hospital and all health protocols have been put in place.”
The statement from the HSE confirmed there are no cases of Ebola in Ireland at present.
The statement added: “There are no known cases of Ebola in Ireland presently.
“The overall risk of a case of Ebola being brought into in Ireland is low.”
“If a case is confirmed in Ireland, the primary concerns will be treatment of the patient and containing the situation.”
Tests were previously carried out for the Ebola virus in Donegal last August after a man who had been working in Sierra Leone was found dead.
Dessie Quinn had been in Ireland for two weeks on holiday from Sierra Leone when his body was discovered.
However, following tests, the HSE confirmed that laboratory samples had proved negative for the Ebola virus.
Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs has told the Irish Times that there are fewer than 500 registered Irish citizens in the countries affected by Ebola.
There are fewer than 20 Irish citizens in Liberia and Guinea, fewer than 50 in Sierra Leone and about 400 in Nigeria.
The Department is advising people to avoid non-essential travel to Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia and Nigeria.
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