Congolese health officials confirmed another Ebola outbreak in the east of the country on Sunday, the fourth in less than three years
BENI, Congo – Congolese health officials on Sunday confirmed another Ebola outbreak in the east of the country, the fourth in less than three years. On February 3, a woman died in the town of Butembo in North Kivu province, Health Minister Eteni Longondo announced.
The woman from the nearby village of Biena felt unwell for a few days before taking the test at a clinic there. He then went to a hospital in Butembo, but died before receiving the results. The government has begun tracking down everyone who came in contact with it to try to “eradicate the epidemic as soon as possible,” Longondo said.
This is the twelfth outbreak in the Congo, in the midst of conflict, since the virus was first discovered in the country in 1976 and occurs less than three months after an outbreak in the western province of Equateur, which officially ended in November. The 2018 outbreak in eastern Congo was the second deadliest in the world and killed 2,299 people before it ended in June. This outbreak lasted nearly two years and was fought amid unprecedented challenges, including entrenched conflicts between armed groups, the world’s largest measles epidemic, and the spread of COVID-19.
Health officials are concerned that a new Ebola outbreak could severely affect the country’s fragile health system, especially as it faces a resurgence of COVID-19.
“While there is hope that this early identification of an infection can help contain this outbreak quickly, Ebola and COVID-19 outbreaks have extended Congo’s health systems to the limit and this could put a much greater pressure on an already exasperated system problem, “said Jason Kindrachuk, an assistant professor in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at the Canadian University of Manitoba and who is conducting research on Ebola outbreak survivors. West Africa 2014-2016, the deadliest in history.
The Ebola virus is highly contagious and can be contracted through body fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. Although the source of the contamination is still unknown, the woman who died was the wife of an Ebola survivor, according to the government. According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the virus can live in the semen of male survivors for more than three years, and according to health experts, as outbreaks are more common, it is important to understand more about how contracted.
In a statement on Sunday, the World Health Organization said it was not uncommon for sporadic cases to occur after a major outbreak and that pre-Ebola responses were already facilitating its treatment.
“The experience and ability of local health teams have been instrumental in detecting this new Ebola case and paving the way for a timely response,” Drs. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. The WHO is investigating the case and trying to identify the strain of the virus to determine its link to the previous outbreak.
Congo has suffered from more than a quarter of a century of conflict and distrust of government health workers and other outsiders is high in eastern Congo. Residents in Butembo are already wondering why four days have passed since the woman was tested to announce the results.
“It’s frustrating because the contacts will have moved and it will be difficult to find them,” Vembey Kasondoli, a resident of Butembo, told The Associated Press. “The government and the health ministry should contain the disease as soon as possible.”