The dead from his epidemic EbolaIn the Democratic Republic of Congo more than 200, a month after being declared in an emergency the northeastern part of the country, African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the African Union's health service, announced today.
Laboratory tests confirmed that 875 people have contracted the virus and 202 of them died since May 15, which means mortality amounts to 23%. In neighbouring Uganda the confirmed cases are 19 and two deaths have been recorded.
The current epidemic of hemorrhagic fever is caused by the Budibugio strain, for which there is neither vaccine nor specific treatment. The epicenter of the epidemic is the province of Ituri, in the northeastern DRC of Congo, to which access is difficult due to the poor condition of the road network and the action of armed organisations.
CDC Africa's head of emergency response, Wessam Mankoula, said at a press conference he granted today that the agency "is concerned" because tracking patients' contacts in the Congolese GDR remains at insufficient levels "because of security problems and access to certain zones".
On the contrary, the epidemic is under control in Uganda.
Ebola, transmitted by physical fluids and close contact, has killed more than 15,000 people. in Africa within half a century.