Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
- WHO declared the Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a global health emergency.
- Bundibugyo virus drives the epidemic with 80 suspected deaths and 246 cases reported.
- No approved vaccine exists; Doctors Without Borders scaled up the response amid rising international concerns.
KAMPALA, Uganda — The World Health Organization on Sunday declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a "public health emergency of international concern."
The latest epidemic is being driven by the Bundibugyo virus, one of several viruses known as Orthoebolaviruses that can cause Ebola disease, according to the WHO.
The outbreak does not yet meet the criteria of a "pandemic emergency," the organization said. But with a rising number of cases, at least 80 suspected deaths and no approved vaccine, fears are mounting over how effectively the outbreak can be contained. Here's what to know.
What is Ebola?
Ebola is a severe and often fatal disease that is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It can also be spread through contact with contaminated materials or a person who has died from the disease.
Symptoms often include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache and a sore throat, followed by vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, among others. Internal and external bleeding can occur later as the disease progresses.
There are six known virus species linked to Ebola, but only three cause most large outbreaks: Ebola virus, Sudan virus and Bundibugyo virus, the latter of which is behind the current epidemic, according to the WHO.
How many people have tested positive?
In the Democratic Republic of Congo's current outbreak, there have been at least 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-confirmed cases and 246 suspected cases reported as of Saturday in the country's remote northeastern Ituri province on the border with Uganda, the UN health body said.
On Sunday, the WHO initially said another case was confirmed in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital, Kinshasa, but later clarified that the individual had "tested negative for Bundibugyo virus on confirmatory testing."
Elsewhere, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Goma, at least one Ebola case has been identified, according to a spokesperson for the Rwanda-backed AFC/M23 rebel coalition, which seized the city last year in a rapid offensive.
In Uganda, two laboratory-confirmed cases, including one death, have so far been reported in the country's capital, Kampala, the WHO reported. The two cases had no apparent link to each other, but the individuals had travelled from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Uganda's media office said on Saturday the body of a Congolese man who died in Kampala had been returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo. The other individual is being treated in a hospital, a spokesperson said. "There is no cause for alarm," the office posted on X.
How deadly is the disease?
Ebola fatality rates have varied in past outbreaks from 25% to 90%, the WHO said. The average death rate is about 50%.
The fatality rate involving the Bundibugyo strain is estimated to be between 25% and 40%, according to medical care organization Doctors Without Borders, or Médecins Sans Frontières, which is preparing to scale up its response in Ituri province.
"The number of cases and deaths we are seeing in such a short timeframe, combined with the spread across several health zones and now across the border, is extremely concerning," Trish Newport, Doctors Without Borders' emergency program manager, said Saturday.
"In Ituri, many people already struggle to access health care and live with ongoing insecurity, making rapid action critical to prevent the outbreak from escalating further," she said in a statement.
Last year, 45 people died in the Democratic Republic of Congo after an Ebola outbreak in a remote region of Kasai province, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Is there a cure?
There are currently no approved treatments or vaccines specific to the Bundibugyo virus, according to health experts.
Has this happened before?
Yes. This is the third detected outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain after previous outbreaks in Uganda between 2007 and 2008 and in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2012, Doctors Without Borders said.
It is the Democratic Republic of Congo's 17th Ebola outbreak since the first case was discovered in 1976, according to the group.
What makes it a global health emergency?
In its assessment, the WHO set out several reasons explaining why the outbreak has been classified as a public health emergency of international concern.
Notably, the number of suspected deaths, laboratory-confirmed cases and suspected cases is growing. While the true scale of the epidemic is unknown, all signs point toward a "potentially much larger outbreak than what is currently being detected and reported."
Another key concern is how the disease could spread to other countries, with nations that share a border with the Democratic Republic of Congo considered at "high risk for further spread."
What is being done to contain the epidemic?
Humanitarian organizations like Doctors Without Borders are preparing to launch large-scale responses as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, international coordination is being ramped up, aimed at preventing the epidemic's spread, with WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus praising the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda for their "frankness" in determining the risk posed to other nations.
Ghebreyesus plans to convene an emergency committee "as soon as possible" to address the situation and discuss how nations should respond, according to WHO.
