The World Health Organization (WHO) says the latest Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo has been traced to a 65-year old woman.
The woman died of the disease in Mangina Hospital – about 30km (17 miles) from the city of Beni.
The head of the WHO’s emergency response, Peter Salama revealed that seven members of her immediate family also died of the virus.
The latest outbreak is coming days after the country declared that the previous outbreak over. That outbreak killed 33 people in the northwest region was over.
The challenge for health officials is that they are unable to confirm the particular strain of Ebola causing the outbreak.
Officials of the World Health Organization have said that it may be impossible to use a vaccine to tackle the latest outbreak.
“We’re responding to an outbreak of this high-threat pathogen, with one of the highest mortality rates of any known disease, but in the context of a war zone.”
Video of my briefing today on the current #Ebola outbreak in eastern #DRCpic.twitter.com/g6efJll8og
— Peter Salama (@PeteSalama) August 3, 2018
Finding a vaccine
WHO’s emergency response chief Peter Salama had said that the latest outbreak could be the Zaire, Sudan or Bundibugyo strain.
He told Reuters that if the latest outbreak is the Zaire strain, the Merck vaccine used in the last Ebola outbreak could help.
Should the latest outbreak belong to another strain, Salama says the situation will be much more complex.
“The majority of the cases occurred in the second half of July. When the provincial medical teams have looked back. They have noted cases that could be consistent with Ebola. That began even in May but it’s far too early to say,” Salama said.
International health experts on Thursday set up a laboratory in the city of Beni to help contain the spread.
Ebola leads to internal and external bleeding which can cause damage done to blood vessels.
The virus which is transmitted by bats was first discovered in DRC in 1976 and named after the Ebola river.
Source: Africafeeds.com
