The Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) announced a new case of Ebola on Saturday (23), four months after the end of the last outbreak recorded in the country. The Ministry of Health announced a new outbreak in the country.
According to the country’s Biomedical Research Institute, a 31-year-old man was diagnosed with the disease in Mbandaka, the capital of the country’s Ecuador region. According to the DRC’s Ministry of Health, the patient started experiencing symptoms in early April, but only sought treatment a week later.
The World Health Organization confirmed the infection, and said that the case may indicate the presence of others infected.
“Time is not on our side. The disease has made progress in the past two weeks and we are now chasing it,” said WHO Africa Director Matshidiso Moeti.
The World Health Organization said it would reinforce vaccination teams and campaigns in Mbandaka, an important trading center on the banks of the Congo River. The city experienced two major Ebola outbreaks recently – one in 2018 and one in 2020. The city has many links with the country’s capital, Kinshasa.
Across the country, there are already 13 Ebola outbreaks. Between 2018 and 2020 alone, nearly 2,300 people died from the disease.
Between 2013 and 2016, more than 11,000 people died in the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, which began in Guinea.
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