Ebola virus found in eye fluid of US doctor months after he was declared fully recovered

Specialist doctor said as neither tissue or tears are infected so man does not pose a health risk

Dr Ian Crozier caught the deadly Ebola virus in September last year while he was working in West Africa during the latest outbreak (Rex images)

Ebola has been found in the eye of a US doctor months after he was thought to have fully recovered.

Dr Ian Crozier caught the deadly Ebola virus, which has infected more than 26,000 people since December 2013, in September last year while he was working in West Africa during the latest outbreak.

The 43-year-old American, who was working with the World Health Organisation (WHO) at the time, was treated at the Emory University Hospital’s specialised Ebola unit in Atlanta and released in October last year when Ebola was no longer detected in his blood.

Two months later he developed an inflammation and high blood pressure – which can cause swelling and potentially serious vision problems – in one eye.

When Emory ophthalmologist Dr Steven Yeh drained and tested the fluid from his eye he found that it contained the Ebola virus – although Dr Crozier’s tears and tissue did not.

Other survivors have reported eye problems, but exact numbers remains unknown. The virus is also thought to persist in semen for months following an all-clear.

As Dr Crozier’s tears and tissues remained free of the virus Dr Yeh believes he does not pose a public health risk – but added that survivors needed to be monitored.

An account of the case was discussed by doctors at an Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology conference in Denver yesterday and the results published earlier today.

Ebola cases in Guinea and Sierra Leone dropped to their lowest total in 2015 this week, WHO reported. More than 11,000 people have died from the virus, the vast majority in West Africa.

Additional reporting by Associated Press