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Patient Monitored For Possible Ebola At Boston Hospital

BOSTON (CBS) – A person who recently traveled to West Africa was being monitored for possible Ebola at Mass. General Hospital Tuesday evening.

The hospital conducted an assessment and says the patient did not have the Ebola virus. "After evaluation and testing, Ebola virus disease has been ruled out as the cause of the symptoms of the patient who came to MGH earlier this evening," hospital spokesman Michael Morrison said.

The patient was considered "extremely low risk" and health officials followed necessary protocols.

"Fever in travelers from West Africa is a common occurrence," Scott Zoback of the Department of Public Health said Tuesday. "Among the thousands of travelers who have been monitored since October 2014, none of those with fever have been diagnosed with Ebola."

Zoback says it is likely this traveler had another explanation for the fever, but no other information was released.

"For nearly a year MGH has been planning, preparing, and practicing for a possible case of Ebola virus disease," Morrison said. "Those efforts helped ensure this situation was managed smoothly, and in a timely manner."

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