The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has already caused 5,026 deaths among 10,351 people infected, according to data released on Saturday, the 31st, by the country’s Ministry of Health.
The case fatality rate is nearly 50%. Another 2,788 people have recovered from the disease.
Caused by the Bundibugyo virus, the outbreak was declared in mid-May and became the second deadliest in history, trailing only the epidemic that hit West Africa between 2014 and 2016, when 11,000 people died across several countries.
Since May, the disease has spread to 67 of Congo’s 178 health zones, spread across eight of the 26 provinces.
The largest concentration of cases is in the country’s east, especially in the Ituri and North Kivu provinces, which together account for 9,782 confirmed cases and 4,792 deaths.
“It is a very tragic milestone because it is not just a number,” said Dr. Patrick Otim, WHO’s head of program areas. “They are families and communities devastated by this outbreak.”
One-third of the victims died without receiving care
One of the obstacles to stopping transmission is the difficulty of tracing the contacts of infected people.
According to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), about 80% of new cases are outside the contact chains monitored by authorities.
To give an idea, one-third of the people who died did not receive treatment at treatment centers. The victims died even before being tested, according to Otim.
“They are people we have never had the opportunity to try to save, and this is one of our biggest concerns in this outbreak. How can we reach people sooner and get them to seek health facilities to have a real chance of surviving?” asked the WHO representative.
Conflicts and strikes hinder the fight against Ebola
The response to the disease also faces difficulties due to armed conflicts in the east of the country, resistance by part of the population to health measures, and strikes by professionals who have not been paid.
On Friday, the 30th, staff at a treatment center in Tchomia, Ituri Province, halted activities to demand four months of overdue payments.
The unit currently treats five patients with confirmed diagnoses and ten suspected cases.
Outbreak crosses Congo’s borders
The outbreak has also crossed Congo’s borders.
In October, Kenya and Nigeria confirmed cases of the disease. Kenya recorded eight infections and two deaths. In Nigeria, the only patient with a confirmed diagnosis was transferred to Switzerland. Cases had also been reported in Uganda.
With records in three African regions, the current outbreak is considered the most geographically widespread seen on the continent.
What is Ebola?
Ebola is a severe infectious disease caused by viruses of the Filoviridae family. There are different species capable of causing the disease, including Zaire, Sudan, and Bundibugyo.
The latter is responsible for the current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Infection is a zoonosis, meaning it can be transmitted from animals to humans. It is believed that fruit bats are natural hosts of the Ebola viruses, though this relationship is still being studied.
Human-to-human transmission occurs through direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person, alive or dead, or with objects contaminated by these fluids.
It is not an airborne disease, like influenza or COVID-19.
What are the symptoms of Ebola?
The main symptoms are:
- Sudden, high fever;
- Headache and muscle pains;
- Severe weakness;
- Diarrhea and vomiting;
- In severe cases, hemorrhaging and organ failure.
Bundibugyo virus does not have an approved specific vaccine
The Bundibugyo species was named after the district of the same name in Uganda, where it was first identified in 2007.
It is different from the Zaire species, responsible for some of the largest Ebola outbreaks on record, including the West Africa epidemic between 2014 and 2016.
This difference has important implications for disease control. Vaccines and treatments developed against the Zaire species have not proven effective against Bundibugyo.
That is: to date, there is no approved vaccine or specific therapy for this species. Patients receive supportive care, with measures to ease symptoms and treat possible complications.
(WITH information FROM AP)
