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'Relentless' Ebola Has Nearly 50% Lethality Rate in Congo
Newser • • health
Key Points:
- Deaths from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo have surpassed 5,000, with 10,351 confirmed infections and a lethality rate of nearly 50%, according to the Congolese Ministry of Health.
- The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus and declared in mid-May, has spread to 67 health zones across eight provinces, with 50 zones still reporting active cases.
- This Ebola outbreak is the second deadliest in history, following the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic that killed 11,000 people; nearly 3,000 patients have recovered so far.
- The Bundibugyo virus has no known vaccine or specific treatment, so health workers provide care based on symptoms, complicating containment efforts.
- About one-third of deaths occur outside treatment centers before testing, increasing the risk of further community transmission and raising concerns about the authorities' ability to control the outbreak.
