Death toll tops 1,500 in fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history, Congo says
Health officials said the outbreak is driven by the Bundibugyo strain, with contact tracing at 78.3% and no approved vaccine or treatment.
- On Friday, the World Health Organization reported the Ebola death toll in the Democratic Republic of Congo reached 1,521, making it the second-worst outbreak on record since the virus was identified in mid-May.
- Driven by the Bundibugyo strain, the virus spreads faster than previous outbreaks, with the majority of cases concentrated in the resource-rich Ituri province where armed conflict and high population mobility complicate response efforts.
- Dr. Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa CDC, reported Thursday that contact tracing efforts remain far off target, with only 17,558 people identified of the 135,000 needed as 80% of new cases have no known links.
- More than 80% of beds in treatment centers are occupied, and officials warn they could soon be overwhelmed; Kaseya said 60% of deaths occurred in communities rather than health facilities, indicating unchecked transmission.
- A KFF analysis noted the United States response faces "significant upheaval" in global health programs, potentially affecting coordination as the outbreak continues to unfold and vaccine trials advance in Congo.
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126 Articles
The outbreak caused by the Ebola virus, which has been spreading since April in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), is the second largest disease in the history of surveillance of the spread of the virus.
Ebola: The number of registered cases stood at 3,532 on Friday, according to figures from the Congolese Ministry of Communication. There are also about 1,556…
On Friday, 3,532 cases of Ebola virus disease were confirmed in five provinces of the country, according to data published by the Congolese authorities, of which 1,532 people died.
The poor hygienic conditions and overcrowding favour contagion, but the population has even more serious problems.
Ebola outbreak in Congo surges to second-largest on record
The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has quickly grown into the second-largest on record, with cases taking just weeks to reach levels that had taken years in previous outbreaks.
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