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The Democratic Republic of Congo’s Institute of Public Health reported 4,945 confirmed cases as of Sunday including 101 new infections in the preceding 24 hours. This surge has pushed the fatality count to 2,325 a figure that now exceeds the 2,299 deaths tallied during the 2018-2020 outbreak which was previously the nation’s most lethal according to data cited by Al Jazeera. The current crisis declared on May 15 represents the 17th Ebola outbreak in the country since the virus was first identified there 50 years ago a World Health Organization overview noted.
Transmission has accelerated at an unprecedented rate with the outbreak reaching 2,000 deaths in under three months compared to five months for the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic to hit 1,000 fatalities Reuters figures show. United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher warned last week that the epidemic is killing someone every 30 minutes. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention assessment found that the outbreak surpassed 1,000 confirmed cases within 40 days in contrast to 235 days for the 2018 event.
The World Health Organization described the pace of transmission across six of the country’s 26 provinces as exceptional while limited cross-border spread has seen 20 cases confirmed in Uganda as of Aug. 12 along with isolated instances treated in Germany and France. Conflict population displacement and porous borders have complicated containment efforts in the affected regions an International Medical Corps briefing indicated. Health officials inaugurated a new treatment centre in Rwakole Bunia on Aug. 4 in a bid to bolster local response capacity.
No vaccine has yet been approved for the Bundibugyo strain responsible for the latest epidemic though several candidates are advancing through development pipelines. The University of Oxford launched the first human trials of its ChAdOx1 BDBV candidate in July after the UK’s MHRA granted conditional approval with the first volunteer vaccinated on July 24 the institution announced. This vaccine employs the same viral vector technology as the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 shot and the CEPI has backed the effort as part of rapid response measures.
The World Health Organization is separately sponsoring a clinical trial in DR Congo to evaluate two existing antiviral therapies for their potential to improve patient survival rates. Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for speed scale and solidarity to curb the outbreak before it advances further according to remarks reported by Al Jazeera. The agency has set a target of reversing the spread within three months though this refers specifically to bringing transmission under control rather than fully ending the epidemic.
Ebola symptoms typically emerge between two and 21 days after infection and initially resemble flu or malaria with fever headache and fatigue before progressing to vomiting diarrhoea and potential organ failure according to descriptions from public health authorities. The virus spreads through contact with bodily fluids from infected individuals a transmission dynamic that poses particular risks in areas with high population mobility. Previous Bundibugyo outbreaks have been rare with only two documented prior to the current event in Uganda in 2007 and DR Congo in 2012 according to historical records maintained by the CDC.
