Ebola: More than 1,000 infected, 254 dead in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Kinshasa/Bunia – Just over a month after the Ebola outbreak began in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the number of confirmed cases has risen to more than 1,000. According to the Ministry of Information in Kinshasa, there are 1,003 confirmed cases and 254 deaths in three provinces.

Experts fear that this is the peak of the worst yet Ebolaoutbreak has not yet been reached. The authorities suspect a high number of unreported cases. The fatality rate is currently around 25 percent. This means the situation remains extremely tense for the health authorities.

Contact tracing remains a big problem

Ebola cases have also been recorded in neighboring Uganda since the outbreak was announced in May. 19 people became ill there, two of them died. According to authorities, the cases are linked to the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A big problem remains tracking possible chains of infection. So far only 58 percent of contact persons have been recorded and monitored. However, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 90 percent of all people who have had contact with an infected person would have to be recorded in order to effectively stop the spread of the disease.

Ebola virus Bundibugyo makes it difficult to combat

Ebola fever is considered a life-threatening disease. The virus is transmitted through direct physical contact and through contact with body fluids. The current pathogen type Bundibugyo makes the situation particularly difficult. There is currently neither an approved vaccine nor a special therapy for this variant.

In May, a US doctor was taken to the isolation ward at the Berlin Charité with an Ebola infection. Peter Stafford (39) was infected with a rare type of virus while working in the Congo and was then treated in Germany. After about two weeks, the good news came: the doctors were able to save his life. The decisive factor was a drug that had not yet been approved which is based on antibodies from Ebola survivors.