The number of confirmed Ebola cases has exceeded 8,000 in Congo, health officials in the country confirmed on Monday.
Congo’s National Institute of Public Health said in a Sept. 28 statement that there are 8,067 confirmed cases and 3,901 deaths as a result of Ebola.
That represents a case fatality rate of 48.4 percent.
Seven provinces are affected—North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uélé, Bas-Uélé, Ituri, Tshopo, and South Ubangi—and the disease is active in 63 of the country’s 167 health zones (37.7 percent).
The current outbreak is
causedby the rare Bundibugyo ebolavirus and was
detectedin mid-May in Congo, which has dealt with more than a dozen Ebola outbreaks in the past.
It has
becomethe deadliest in Congo’s history after surpassing the 2018–2020 epidemic, in which 2,299 people died.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said in its latest report that since Sept. 11, Ebola had spread to one new province (South Ubangi) and two new health zones.
In the Sept. 25 report, the WHO said that while the number of newly reported cases each day remains high, the situation varies across Congo.
It said that the continuously high case fatality ratio “highlights the seriousness of the disease and the persistent challenges in timely case detection and access to early and adequate patient care.”
The WHO said that factors affecting outbreak control include ongoing conflict in the region and limited access to basic services.
Specifically, these and other problems are impeding surveillance and monitoring of the disease, as well as affecting efforts to ensure patients get crucial timely care.
The United Nations noted in May that efforts to contain the outbreak were being hampered by conflict involving multiple armed groups, including the Allied Democratic Forces, CODECO militias, and the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group.
The U.N. also highlighted poor roads and damaged infrastructure, as well as a lack of trust in authorities by communities.
Across the whole of Africa, this epidemic
isnow second only to the 2014–2016 West African outbreak, which infected at least 28,600 people and killed more than 11,000 across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.
There is no approved treatment for the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, but the WHO has
saidclinical trials are underway to develop a vaccine.
Congolese authorities in August
launcheda targeted Ebola vaccination program for healthcare staff and frontline workers.
These workers received the Ervebo vaccine, which was effective in past Ebola outbreaks caused by a different, more common type of the virus.
US Boosts Ebola Aid
Last week, the United States said it was sending an additional $267 million in aid to Congo to support the response to the Ebola outbreak.
The $267 million brings the total aid that the United States has directly given to $887 million. That is on top of what Washington has already given in international aid through the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The State Department said on Sept. 23 that it was coordinating with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the governments of Congo, Uganda, and other countries in the region “to mount a rapid and comprehensive response to the Ebola outbreak.”
The funds will go toward specialized Ebola treatment units, healthcare facilities in affected areas, and personal protective equipment, among other interventions and support.
According to the CDC, there have been no reported cases of Ebola associated with this outbreak in the United States.
The CDC says that the overall risk to the American public and travelers remains low.
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