The incident involved a 46-year-old woman who died on August 15 in the town of Beni. She received care at Beni Referral Hospital, initially for other illnesses, but later exhibited symptoms consistent with Ebola.
Virus samples were taken from the patient and the diagnosis was confirmed by two branches of the country’s National Biomedical Research Institute, located in Beni and Goma, the provincial capital.
Cause for concern
The analysis showed that the case was Genetically linked to the 2018-2020 Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, the country’s longest and largest.
“Ebola outbreaks are occurs with greater frequency in the Democratic Republic of the Congo with which it is concerned. However, the health authorities in North Kivu have successfully contained several Ebola outbreaks and building on this expertise is sure to bring this expert under control quickly,” speak Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Africa Regional Director.
Staff from the UN agency and Congolese health agencies are working to prevent the spread of the disease.
Protect life
They have identified 160 contacts whose health is being closely monitored, while investigations are still underway to determine the vaccination status of the confirmed case.
Currently, 1,000 doses of the Ebola rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine are available in the country’s stockpile, and 200 doses will be sent to Beni this week.
The WHO said “circular vaccination” – where contacts, as well as contacts are vaccinated to limit the spread of the virus and protect lives – is expected to begin shortly. .
The last Ebola outbreak in the Beni health area was under control for about two months, ending on December 16, 2021. Overall, 11 cases have been recorded – 8 confirmed and 3 possible cases – including 6 deaths.
