Ebola Virus Outbreak 2014 News Update: First Confirmed U.S. Case Announced

A case of Ebola has finally been found in United States, but top health officials agree that now is not the time to panic--yet.

The patient left Liberia on Sept. 10 and arrived in the U.S. on Sept. 20, per Dr. Tom Frieden, the director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.  Seven days later the patient sought medical help and was hospitalized in isolation on Sept. 28. in Dallas, Texas.

Tests confirming the diagnosis came in Tuesday morning, with Friedan briefing President Obama on the patient the same day.

It is natural that U.S. citizens would be nervous that the virus could threaten human health in the country, especially considering that the current outbreak has a 71% mortality rate. Additionally, according to a report from the World Health Organization, the newest outbreak of the virus has killed more than 3,000 people and has infected 6,574 in West Africa (due to the difficulty of tracking this disease that number is very likely that that number has increased since the report was released). Still, experts say that this is not the time to panic.

The most pertinent reason to not worry too much about the disease is because of the way that it is spread. The disease has been properly contained and when it is, it does not spread to others. Ebola also does not spread through the air, furthering the need to remain calm during this time.

Geographic location is also a major reason why experts are not concerned about the disease reaching levels that it has reached in West Africa. The healthcare Infrastructure of that country has been extremely strained when dealing with this disease, suffering from understaffed hospitals and more advanced medical technology that the Western world is privileged to have.

That is not to say that the U.S. has nothing to fear, but it is clear that the country is in a better position to deal with this disease than those in West Africa.

The CDC is also confident that it will be able to contain this virus as an isolated incident and has asserted these sentiments in their statement to the press.

"It's a sever disease, which has a high-case fatality rate, even with the best of care, but there are core, tried and true public health interventions that stop it," Friedman said, per CNN.

According to the CDC, the Ebola virus causes viral hemorrhagic fever, which can affect multiple organs and is often accompanied by bleeding.

Early symptoms are quick to reveal themselves and include an onset of body discomfort and issues such as muscle pain, weakness, headaches and a sore throat.