The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has spread to two additional health zones, raising concerns among health authorities and aid agencies working to contain the disease.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday that new cases of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola had been detected in Bulu, in South Ubangi province near the border with the Central African Republic, and in Dungu, in Haut-Uele province near the border with South Sudan.
The latest cases have increased the number of affected health zones to 63 across seven provinces.
According to WHO data, the DRC had recorded 7,890 confirmed Ebola cases and 3,799 deaths as of September 23, meaning nearly half of those confirmed to have contracted the virus have died.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said ongoing conflict and population displacement were making it increasingly difficult for health workers to reach affected communities, trace contacts and provide timely treatment.
“The response to Ebola is affected by the conflict, because there is displacement and there is an access problem to some areas,” Tedros said.
The Bundibugyo strain is particularly challenging because there are currently no approved vaccines against it. Tedros said the WHO was accelerating clinical trials for vaccines and treatments.
Contact Tracing Falls Short
Health authorities are also struggling to identify people who may have been exposed to the virus.
Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Director-General Dr Jean Kaseya said the more than 7,000 confirmed cases should have resulted in an estimated 420,000 contacts being monitored.
However, only about 30,000 people are currently included on the contact-tracing list.
“When the outbreak is at community level, we cannot talk about control,” Kaseya said.
Ituri province remains the epicentre of the outbreak, with 6,032 confirmed cases recorded since the epidemic began in May. The province has also reported 868 new confirmed cases in the past 21 days.
North Kivu is the second most affected province, with 1,480 confirmed cases, including 567 recorded during the past 21 days. WHO said North Kivu now accounts for about one-third of newly confirmed cases and deaths.
Nearly 60 percent of people diagnosed with Ebola in North Kivu have died, significantly higher than the national average of 48 percent.
Medical workers say fear is also preventing some patients from seeking treatment early.
Dr Michel Paluku Mukuloli, who works at a hospital in Butembo, said some patients avoid health facilities because they fear being sent to Ebola treatment centres.
This makes it harder for health workers to detect infections and begin treatment before the disease reaches its most severe stages.
North Kivu has previously experienced three Ebola outbreaks, including the 2018–2020 outbreak, which was previously the DRC's largest and deadliest. Those outbreaks were caused by the Zaire strain of Ebola, rather than the Bundibugyo strain involved in the current outbreak.
Health responders say the Bundibugyo strain remains relatively poorly understood. Early symptoms can also be mild and may easily be mistaken for more common illnesses such as malaria or typhoid fever.
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