Ebola: 11,042 cases and 5,387 deaths in DR Congo
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on L’essentiel
The Ebola outbreak in DR Congo has infected 11,042 people and killed 5,387, according to the Congolese National Institute of Public Health. The toll puts the fatality rate at 48.8%, while Ituri and North Kivu account for most cases, according to AFP.
The current Ebola outbreak in DR Congo has recorded about 2,990 recoveries, bringing the fatality rate to 48.8%, according to the latest figures from the Congolese National Institute of Public Health (INSP), published overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
Starting in Ituri, in the north-east of the country, the outbreak has spread to seven other provinces, with most cases concentrated in Ituri and North Kivu, AFP reports. Violence against health teams and clashes between armed groups are complicating the response in Ituri.
No vaccine specific to the Bundibugyo strain responsible for the current outbreak is available to date. The World Health Organization (WHO) launched a clinical trial in DR Congo on 24 October to determine whether the Ervebo vaccine, approved against the Zaire strain, can offer protection against this strain, while Médecins sans frontières (MSF) called on Monday for its access to be widened to people at risk.
A health centre receiving Ebola patients was also set on fire on Sunday in Lolwa, in Ituri, by young people, according to the INSP.
