DE FAAKTO OUTBREAK INTELLIGENCE
SITUATION-EBOLA SPREADS TO UGANDA FROM DRCongo
BACKGROUND-THE UGANDA MINISTRY OF HEALTH HAS DECLARED AN EBOLA EPIDEMIC
From the World Health Organization
Key Points
- Ministry of Health of Uganda has declared an outbreak of Ebola virus disease
- In South Western Uganda, a 5-year-old child with a recent history of travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo has died from Ebola
- This child was one of 6 people that escaped from the DRC while still being monitored as suspect cases following a burial of the grandfather who succumbed to Ebola
- The childs grandmother has since died from Ebola Virus
- A 3-year-old brother of the deceased child also tested positive for Ebola Virus-he has since been returned to DRCongo for treatment
- 4 suspected Ebola cases have been admitted for treatment in Uganda
- There are 98 Ebola contacts that are being followed up in Uganda
WHO Risk Assessment
Key Points
- All three confirmed cases are imported from DRCongo and belong to the same family who traveled together from DRCongo
- To date, they remain as a single episode of Ebola Virus Disease in Uganda
- The geographical spread in Uganda appears to be limited to one district near the DRCongo border
- Further investigations are ongoing both in Uganda and DRCongo to assess the full extent of the outbreak
About Ebola
- Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans
- The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission
- The average EVD case fatality rate is around 50%. Case fatality rates have varied from 25% to 90% in past outbreaks
- The first EVD outbreaks occurred in remote villages in Central Africa, near tropical rainforests. The 2014–2016 outbreak in West Africa involved major urban areas as well as rural ones
- Community engagement is key to successfully controlling outbreaks. Good outbreak control relies on applying a package of interventions, namely case management, infection prevention and control practices, surveillance and contact tracing, a good laboratory service, safe and dignified burials and social mobilization
- Early supportive care with re-hydration, symptomatic treatment improves survival. There is as yet no licensed treatment proven to neutralize the virus but a range of blood, immunological and drug therapies are under development (WHO)
WHO https://www.who.int/csr/don/13-june-2019-ebola-uganda/en/
Uganda Ministry of Health https://www.afro.who.int/sites/default/files/2019-06/Ebola%20Virus%20Disease%20Sitrep%202%2013th%20June%202019.pdf
