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The World Health Organisation (WHO) announced on Friday that health workers are investigating 906 suspected cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including 223 suspected deaths.
An active outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus continues to affect the DRC, with cases now spreading into neighbouring Uganda.
The WHO declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern in early May, noting that the virus likely began circulating undetected two months ago in a densely populated area.
Health authorities have officially confirmed 125 Ebola cases and 17 deaths across the DRC’s Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu provinces.
Meanwhile, Uganda’s health ministry updated its figures on Friday to nine confirmed cases, rising from an earlier WHO report of seven cases and one death.
Although three of Uganda’s cases originated in the DRC, the WHO confirmed that the country has not yet recorded any community transmission.
The rare Bundibugyo strain currently lacks a vaccine and carries a staggering death rate.
Anais Legand, a representative from the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, revealed that the virus kills between 30 per cent and 50 per cent of confirmed patients, though she noted these figures remain preliminary.
Legand stressed that immediate access to early medical care could drastically reduce these high fatality rates, celebrating the recent discharge of the DRC’s first recovered patient after two consecutive negative tests.
The WHO expects the number of suspected cases to rise as health teams improve tracking and surveillance across the region.
Laboratory teams also expect to process a large backlog of test samples in the coming days to confirm more cases.
The WHO said experts cannot yet say if the outbreak has peaked as field investigations are still ongoing.
