On Monday morning, an official with direct knowledge of the Texas nurse's case told CNN that CDC disease detectives interviewed the nurse several times and thought there were "inconsistencies" in the type of personal protective gear she wore and with the process used to put the gear on and remove it.
Frieden has spoken of possible ways she became infected. It could have happened when the nurse removed her protective gear -- a bit of infected bodily fluid somehow touching her -- or it she could have come into contact with infected fluid as Duncan received kidney dialysis or respiratory intubation.
Those procedures were "a desperate measure to try to save his life," Frieden said. "Both of those procedures may spread contaminated materials and are considered high-risk procedures."
He said, "When you have potentially soiled or contaminated gloves or masks or other things, to remove those without any risk of any contaminated material ... touching you and being then on your clothes or face or skin ... is not easy to do right."
Or the problem could have been something else entirely.
Taking extra precautions outside recommended CDC protocols can actually increase the odds of infection, Frieden has said. Caregivers are supposed to double their gloves in some situations, but triple gloving is a violation of CDC protocol because it increases the steps to remove gear and could expose a health care worker for longer than needed.
