What to Know About the Ebola Outbreak in Congo and Uganda
Bundibugyo is one strain of the virus, and the WHO says it has caused two previous outbreaks.
Health officials are racing to contain a new Ebola outbreak linked to the Bundibugyo strain, with the World Health Organization saying the flare-up does not qualify as a pandemic emergency even as it warns that countries bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo face a high risk of further spread.
Earlier, the WHO said the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda amounted to a public health emergency of international concern.
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So what is known so far about the latest Ebola outbreak and the way it has spread?
What is Ebola?
This marks the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) 17th outbreak since the virus was first identified in 1976.
What is the Bundibugyo strain?
Bundibugyo is one strain of the virus, and the WHO says it has caused two previous outbreaks.
The agency described the current outbreak as “extraordinary” because, unlike Ebola-Zaire strains, there are no approved therapeutics or vaccines specifically targeting the Bundibugyo virus.
A member of medical staff works at a vaccination station at Mulago Referral Hospital in Uganda as part of an Ebola vaccine trial last year
“Unfortunately, Bundibugyo has fewer proven countermeasures than Zaire ebolavirus, where vaccines have been highly effective in controlling outbreaks,” said Amanda Rojek, Associate Professor of Health Emergencies at the Pandemic Sciences Institute at the University of Oxford.
Which countries has it spread to?
The governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda have confirmed cases, with the outbreak hitting the DRC hardest.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said it was working with South Sudan to track cross-border movement and curb any further international spread.
How many people have been affected?
The WHO said there were eight lab-confirmed cases, alongside 80 suspected deaths and 246 suspected infections.
An additional case in Goma, the eastern DRC city controlled by M23 rebels, was confirmed in a statement they released today.
Ugandan authorities also confirmed a second case.
The WHO cautioned, however, that “there are significant uncertainties to the true number of infected persons and geographic spread associated with this event at the present time”.
