The number of confirmed Ebola virus infections in the latest outbreak in Africa has exceeded 10,000 cases, with 4,887 deaths recorded, most of them in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to health authority data, amid warnings about the difficulty of containing the epidemic after infections were detected in other countries on the continent.
Congolese authorities announced 10,060 cases since the virus was detected last May, in what they described as the deadliest outbreak of the disease in the country's history.
The National Institute of Public Health reported that about 2,684 people have recovered, while the fatality rate is approaching 50 percent. The outbreak is linked to the rare Bundibugyo strain, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments.
The virus spread for weeks before being detected in Ituri Province in northeastern Congo, then extended to large areas of the country's north and east, where the activities of armed groups and lack of trust in the authorities hinder response efforts. Ituri and North Kivu Province account for the majority of cases.
Infections linked to the outbreak have been detected in Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda. The World Health Organization had declared Uganda Ebola-free in late August, after recording 20 cases and two deaths. In Kenya, nine cases and two deaths were recorded, while a 42-year-old Swiss woman was confirmed infected in Nigeria before being transferred to a hospital in Geneva on Monday.
The Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, Jean Kaseya, said the organization continues to trace the source of infection, noting the similarity of the genetic sequence of the Kenyan case with the Nigerian case and some cases recorded in the city of Beni in Congo. He added that the outbreak has expanded from three areas in one province to eight provinces and more than 66 health zones.
In Nigeria, health authorities identified 53 people who had contact with the patient as part of efforts to prevent the spread of the virus. The World Health Organization explained that symptoms appeared on October 7, and that she sought medical care in Abuja on October 11, before her infection with the Bundibugyo strain was confirmed on October 20.
As part of the search for additional means of prevention, testing has begun on the "Ervebo" vaccine, known for its effectiveness against the Zaire strain, to determine whether it can also provide protection against the Bundibugyo strain. According to available data, Ebola has killed more than 15,000 people in Africa since it emerged about half a century ago.
(Source: UNews)
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