Ebola outbreak live: WHO warns deaths will rise after American tests positive - but global risk remains low

Key Points:

• The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain, for which no approved vaccines or drugs exist, and vaccine development could take six to nine months with uncertain efficacy, according to the WHO.
• Dr. Peter Stafford, an American physician infected while operating on an Ebola patient in Ituri province, has been evacuated to Germany for treatment along with his family, highlighting the risks faced by healthcare workers in the outbreak zone.
• The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has imposed a 30-day travel suspension for non-U.S. citizens who have been in DRC, Uganda, or South Sudan within the past 21 days to reduce Ebola transmission risk and is working with international partners to monitor potentially exposed travelers.
• As of the latest reports, there are nearly 600 suspected Ebola cases and 139 suspected deaths, with the first known case dating back to late April in Ituri, a remote province in eastern DRC far from the capital Kinshasa.
• The Bundibugyo Ebola strain, first identified in 2007, has caused only three outbreaks to date, with a fatality rate estimated between 25% and 40%, according to Doctors Without Borders.