The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the World Health Organization on 17 July 2017 [1], just short of a year after the start of the outbreak in summer 2018 [2].
The decision followed recent developments such as the occurrence of cases in previously unaffected areas, including the first confirmed case in Goma, a city of almost 2 million people bordering Rwanda, and one case in Uganda. By 16 July 2019, a total of 2,522 confirmed and probably Ebola cases have been reported in this outbreak, 1,698 of them fatal [3].
The previous Ebola outbreak in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone from 2014 to 2016 ended with more than 28,000 confirmed, probable and suspected cases and more than 11,000 deaths [4].
More information and the most recent rapid risk assessments by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control can be found on a website dedicated to the outbreak [5].
References
- 1.World Health Organization (WHO). Statement on the meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee for Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 17 July 2019. Geneva: WHO; 2019. Available from: https://www.who.int/ihr/procedures/statement-emergency-committee-ebola-drc-july-2019.pdf
- 2.World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO/Africa). Ebola virus disease – Democratic Republic of the Congo. External Situation Report 50. Brazzaville: WHO/Africa; 2019. Available from: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/325883/SITREP_EVD_DRC_20190714-eng.pdf?ua=1
- 3.World Health Organization (WHO). Ebola situation reports: Democratic Republic of the Congo. Geneva: WHO. [Accessed 18 Jul 2019]. Available from: https://www.who.int/ebola/situation-reports/drc-2018/en/
- 4.World Health Organization (WHO). Situation report: Ebola virus disease. Geneva: WHO; 2016. Available from: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/208883/ebolasitrep_10Jun2016_eng.pdf?sequence=1
- 5.European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo – ongoing. Solna: ECDC; 2019. Available from; https://ecdc.europa.eu/en/ebola-virus-disease-outbreak-democratic-republic-congo-ongoing