Health Agency Confirms Fatal Ebola Outbreak in Congo

Africa's top public health agency has confirmed a significant Ebola outbreak in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, with dozens of deaths and hundreds of suspected cases under review. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that 65 deaths had been reported in Ituri province, with 246 suspected infections. Lab tests have so far confirmed 13 cases and definitively tied four deaths to Ebola. Some experts were concerned that the outbreak wasn't reported earlier, the New York Times reports. "It's pretty stunning to have first notice of an outbreak in DRC, which is very experienced, and have it be so large," said Jennifer Nuzzo of the Pandemic Center at the Brown University School of Public Health.

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the WHO was alerted to possible Ebola cases on May 5 and sent a team to investigate, but initial field tests were negative. Subsequent testing at Congo's National Institute of Biomedical Research in Kinshasa confirmed infections. Preliminary analysis suggests the virus is not the Zaire species, the only type for which a licensed vaccine exists; earlier outbreaks in Congo have also involved the Sudan and Bundibugyo species. Some early tests appear to have missed the virus because field equipment was geared to detect only the Zaire strain, Tedros said. Officials said the virus species should be identified within a day. The Africa CDC plans to convene officials from Congo, Uganda, South Sudan, the WHO, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to coordinate the response.

Health officials warn that delayed detection and the presence of cases in Bunia, Ituri's main city, increase containment challenges. Ebola spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected people, putting caregivers at particular risk. Long-running conflict, cross-border movement with Uganda and South Sudan, and unregulated mining sites complicate contact tracing. Uganda has already reported one related, fatal case it says was imported from Congo. A professor of public health who has been involved in past Ebola outbreak responses in Congo said health workers there have a high level of experience, as well as existing infrastructure such as laboratories, per the AP. "In terms of training, people already know what they can do. Now, the expertise and equipment need to be delivered quickly," Gabriel Nsakala said.