The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has surpassed 4,000 confirmed cases, raising fresh concerns among health experts that the virus may be changing.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) says the outbreak has reached a critical stage and is calling for a stronger response. Health teams are now preparing to go door to door in affected communities to identify people with Ebola symptoms and stop the disease from spreading further.
The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. Although it was officially declared on May 15, health officials believe it may have been spreading unnoticed since January.
As of August 4, the DRC had recorded 3,973 cases and 1,801 deaths. Africa CDC Director General Dr. Jean Kaseya said the number of confirmed cases has now exceeded 4,000.
The outbreak is now the second-largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded. It has spread much faster than the West Africa Ebola outbreak at the same point in time.
More than two-thirds of Ebola deaths are happening in communities rather than in treatment centres. This means many patients are not receiving medical care in time and may be infecting others before they are identified.
Doctors have also found that many infected people were not known to health authorities before they became sick. At an MSF treatment centre in Bunia, about 90 percent of admitted patients were not on the official list of contacts linked to previous Ebola cases.
Contact tracing is also proving difficult. Health officials are identifying only about 10 close contacts for each confirmed case, far below the expected average of around 40.
Ebola is a severe viral disease that can cause fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, internal bleeding and organ failure. The outbreak began in Ituri province but has since spread to North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele and Tshopo. Uganda also reported 20 cases before successfully bringing its outbreak under control.
To slow the spread, Africa CDC says health workers will begin actively searching for new cases by visiting homes in affected communities instead of relying only on contact tracing.
Officials also plan to work more closely with local communities, use digital tools to improve disease surveillance and strengthen health services in camps for people displaced by conflict.
In addition, doctors plan to offer the antiviral drug remdesivir to some patients under compassionate use. Researchers will also study whether the Ervebo vaccine, which is approved for another Ebola strain, could help protect people against the Bundibugyo strain after early findings suggested vaccinated people experienced milder illness.
