Ebola caseload in Congo tops 4,000
Kinshasa, Aug 7
The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has reached 4,053, including 1,850 deaths, according to an update released by the country's health authorities.
A total of 694 patients remain in isolation or hospital care, while 793 people have recovered.
International medical humanitarian organization Medecins Sans Frontieres warned Wednesday that the Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC is "more critical than ever," spreading at an alarming and unprecedented pace with "no sign of slowing down."
Meanwhile, the Ebola outbreak in the DRC has killed 330 children and is severely disrupting essential health services in the hardest-hit Ituri Province, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said Thursday.
"Although Children represent nearly one in four confirmed cases, they account for almost one in three deaths. Young children under five are particularly affected, with a case fatality rate more than double that of adults," the organisation noted, Xinhua News Agency reported.
According to UNICEF, the outbreak also caused a sharp decline in childhood immunisation, maternal healthcare and other essential services, as fear of infection and disruptions to health facilities kept families away from care.
"The Ebola outbreak is severely disrupting the entire health system, with inevitable consequences for cases of malaria, diarrhoea, and other treatable illnesses that are the biggest killers of children," said John Agbor, UNICEF representative in the DRC.
The global medical charity Doctors Without Borders warned Wednesday that the situation in eastern DRC was "more critical than ever," spreading at an alarming and unprecedented pace with "no sign of slowing down."
— IANS
Reader Comments
The disruption to routine vaccinations and maternal care is just as alarming as the Ebola itself. When health systems collapse, even treatable diseases like malaria and diarrhoea become lethal. The international community needs to step up now, not later.
This is a global health security issue. With air travel and migration, an unchecked outbreak in one continent can affect everyone. I hope WHO and nations like India provide more technical and financial support to DRC.
The mental trauma for families in those villages must be unimaginable. We see photos of health workers in full PPE and think it's science fiction, but this is real life for them. Praying for the people of DRC 🙏
I appreciate UNICEF's work here, but I think there's a failure in the global response. We've known about this outbreak for over a year - why wasn't the response faster and more coordinated? Waiting until it hits 4,000 cases is too late.
Reminds me of how we dealt with Nipah in Kerala - containment, community education, and isolation. But DRC has much weaker infrastructure and decades of conflict. We need to send more Indian medical teams and vaccine support without hesitation.
E Emma D The We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.