Health authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo are investigating a suspected case of Ebola in the east of the country, the WHO (World Health Organization) said on Saturday (20).
A 46-year-old woman died on Monday in the city of Beni, in eastern Congo, one of the epicenters of the Ebola outbreak that hit the country between 2018 and 2020.
During the period, 2,266 deaths were recorded among 3,311 infected. The outbreak was second only to the one that hit West African countries between 2013 and 2016, when there were more than 11,000 deaths.
The Ebola mortality rate is 68.4% and, among those infected, 29.2% are children.
Beni’s victim was initially treated for other illnesses but later developed symptoms consistent with those seen in Ebola patients, the WHO said in a statement.
Ebola infects humans through close contact with infected animals such as chimpanzees, fruit bats and forest antelope. In Congo, the dense rainforests turn out to be a natural reservoir for the virus.
It then spreads between humans through direct contact with infected blood, body or organ fluids, or indirectly through contact with contaminated environments.
Victims’ bodies are particularly toxic. Community funerals, where people help wash the dead body, are an important way to spread Ebola. The incubation period for the virus can last from two days to three weeks.
The Central African country has recorded 14 Ebola outbreaks since 1976. The most recent one, in northwest Congo, was declared last July, causing five deaths.
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