Risk to Canadians low from Ebola and hantavirus, top doctor says, but new screening in place at airports

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PHAC says it has increased health screening for travellers into Canada from the impacted regions and added signs at airports. It also updated its travel guidance yesterday, now recommending that Canadians avoid non-essential travel to D.R.C. 

According to Dr. Vinh, travellers should also:  

He also said that health-care workers should be mindful of the ongoing outbreak and pay attention to patients who come in with symptoms and may have recently travelled.

There are currently no treatments or vaccines available for the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. This is what makes the current outbreak concerning to health officials, with the WHO calling it "extraordinary." 

While there's no current vaccine candidate, there are ongoing clinical trials to develop and fast track approvals. 

The Zaire strain of the virus, which is the one that most frequently circulates in D.R.C., does have a vaccine. It's called the Ervebo, but is only effective against the Zaire strain. 

Ebola spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids, like blood, vomit or diarrhea, from someone who is sick or has died from the virus. 

"Once you have symptoms, like vomiting, diarrhea, a fever … then you are contagious," said Dr. Donald Vinh, an infectious disease specialist at McGill University Health Centre in Montreal. 

That means anyone who is asymptomatic — which means they are infected but don't have symptoms — is not "thought to be contagious," he added. 

"Ebola is not spread through casual contact, and it's not airborne like measles or COVID," he said. 

In an email, Dr. Donald Vinh, an infectious disease specialist at McGill University Health Centre in Montreal, told me that the science doesn't "strongly favour broad travel/border bans." 

"Studies … have repeatedly found that blanket travel restrictions often have limited impact on stopping the spread of Ebola internationally," he said. 

He said it's because of a few reasons: 

"Researchers have also warned that strict travel bans can unintentionally disrupt humanitarian aid, reduce transparency from affected countries, and complicate outbreak response efforts," he said. 

Reimer said that's a question for Transport Canada. 

"Those discussions do not fall within the Public Health Agency of Canada's purview," she said. 

I have reached out to Transport Canada on this. 

When asked whether Canada needs to put travel restrictions in place to protect against Ebola, Reimer did not directly answer. She said Canada has measures in place like enhanced screening and has prepared sites across the country to respond, if needed.

We're starting to answer some of the questions you have been sending in around Ebola. This is one of the most common ones we've received via email and social media. 

When asked why Canada doesn't have travel restrictions in place, Reimer said that's a decision made by cabinet officials. She said implementing a ban would require them to assess whether that would be effective and whether there is evidence that the virus has spread outside of the region experiencing the outbreak. 

Travel restrictions are a way to "slow the importation of cases," said Vinh. 

But are they necessary?  

"These measures can be temporarily useful to gain time, especially with the uncertainty of the outbreak that's going on regionally and the fragile health-care systems in the affected regions," he said.  

"But historically, the most effective measures have been rapid detection, isolation of cases, contact tracing and protecting health-care workers." 

He stressed that Canada has Ebola protocols in place and that "we're not anywhere in a situation that involves generalized border closures." 

What questions do you have about Ebola? Send an email to ask@cbc.ca. 

The news conference is officially over. But we've received a number of questions from our readers, so follow along for more information about the hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks. 

According to Reimer, the person was assessed by a PHAC quarantine officer and "found to not have any symptoms." 

She said they have since returned to their "point of origin." 

People returning to Canada will only be tested for Ebola if they demonstrate symptoms of the disease and have potentially been exposed, Reimer said.

So, a traveller who was ill but had a "negligible" risk of having been exposed wouldn’t be tested, she said. And not all people who have travelled to areas where there may be Ebola are being tested — only those who have symptoms.

"It is not possible to transmit the Ebola virus unless the individual presents symptoms,” she said. 

Reimer said that there's currently enhanced screening at the Canadian border, which kicked in on Wednesday in response to the Ebola outbreak.

"We have added additional screening questions upon re-entry into the country," she said. Questions inquire about symptoms that may be related to Ebola as well as whether passengers are returning from affected countries.

There is currently more staff at several points of entry, too, she said, including quarantine officers and other "appropriate staff" who can help anybody who comes to the border and demonstrates possible Ebola-related risks that need to be assessed.

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