2 Children Test Negative for Ebola in Ohio

Two young children who were admitted to an Ohio hospital today after they developed fevers following a trip to West Africa have tested negative for Ebola, health officials said.

Two sisters, ages 4 and 6, were taken to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus early this morning after they showed signs of a fever, Jose Rodriguez, director of public affairs and communications for the Columbus Public Health Department, said today.

Instead, the girls tested positive for Influenza A, Rodriguez said.

Before the test results came back, the two were kept in isolation and received supportive care, Jose Rodriguez, director of public affairs and communications for the Columbus Public Health Department, said today.

Besides testing the girls for Ebola and flu, doctors also tested them for other respiratory illnesses, including enterovirus D68, Rodriguez said.

The girls' mother was not held in isolation. She was not identified as a high-risk individual, Rodriguez said, because she was not in Sierra Leone as a health care worker.

The girls returned from Sierra Leone 17 days ago, Rodriguez said. Since returning, their temperatures have been monitored twice daily.

The Columbus Health Department was working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state health department on the situation.

Sierra Leone is one of the four countries hardest hit by the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.