Ebola Virus Disease

Attacks on Ebola treatment centers (ETCs) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's (DRC's) outbreak epicenter continued to reverberate a day after the strike on the Butembo facility, with Doctors Without Borders (MSF) evacuating medical staff from the area amid a report of causalities in security services and efforts to find patients who fled the violence. Along with fresh details about the attack, the World Health Organization (WHO) called the events deplorable and warned that the aftermath could increase transmission. MSF suspends patient care in hot spot MSF said assailants set some of the Butembo compound's facilities and vehicles on fire, and while the blazes were contained and no staff or patients were hurt, teams were forced to stop patient care. The nonprofit the ETC housed 57 patients at the time, including 15 with confirmed Ebola infections. All patients still in the ETC were transferred to a transit center. Given a similar attack on an MSF facility in Katwa...

More than six months after the beginning of the Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and Ituri, the epidemic is not under control with more than 870 confirmed patients and more than 540 deaths. After some successes in stopping transmission in the initial epicenters of Mangina and Beni—and some ancillary locations such as Tchomia, Mutwanga, and Masereka—the epidemic has spread from four to 19 health zones. Previous Ebola outbreaks have demonstrated the importance of gaining the acceptance of the community. Without the communities’ trust, the sick and dead remain hidden and health workers risk being threatened or assailed. People continue to die in the community as health teams aren’t able to gain trust to access all areas, including many that already have limited access to even basic health care since they're affected by conflict. Additionally, people could be exposed to the virus in health centers, which can deter them from seeking treatment. “Although the reasons behi...

“Although the reasons behind the attack are unclear and such violence is unacceptable, what we know is that organisations involved in the Ebola response – MSF included – have failed to gain the trust of a significant part of the population,” said Meinie Nicolai, MSF’s General Director, who is currently visiting North Kivu. “All those involved in this response must change their approach and truly engage with the grievances and fears of the communities.” Previous Ebola outbreaks have demonstrated the importance of gaining the acceptance of the community. Without the communities’ trust, the sick and dead remain hidden and health workers risk being threatened or assailed. More than six months after the beginning of the Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and Ituri provinces , the epidemic is not under control with more than 870 confirmed patients and more than 540 deaths. After some successes in stopping transmission in the initial epicentres of Mangina and Beni, and some ancillary locations s...

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said today that it has suspended all activities at the Ebola treatment center in Katwa, following a violent attack over the weekend, severely limiting access to care in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC's) main hot spot. And in other key developments, the DRC's health ministry reported three more cases, and World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, said $148 million is urgently needed to support the Ebola response in the DRC. He also warned that without help from the global community, the country is at risk of backsliding in its efforts to contain the disease. Work needed to build community trust In a statement, MSF said the attack began at 10 pm on Feb 24 when unidentified assailants began throwing rocks at the 70-bed MSF-managed treatment center, which has admitted 602 patients, including 49 confirmed cases, since December. Then the group set parts of the structure on fire, which destroyed med...

GOMA, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - Armed assailants attacked an Ebola center in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday, setting off a fire and becoming embroiled in an extended gunbattle with security forces that has yet to end, the local mayer said. The identity and motive of the assailants were unclear. Aid workers have faced mistrust fueled by widespread rumors in some areas as they work to contain the Ebola outbreak. Dozens of armed militia also regularly attack civilians and security forces in eastern Congo’s borderlands with Uganda and Rwanda, which has significantly hampered the response to the disease. Wednesday’s attack in the city of Butembo was the second in Congo’s Ebola-hit east. On Sunday unidentified assailants set fire to another treatment center in the nearby town of Katwa, killing a nurse. “After the attack... in Katwa, we decided to reinforce the security of these structures. That is why there is an exchange of fire between the police and t...

World Bank Fact Sheet Outlines Group’s Efforts To Contain DRC’s Ebola Outbreak Feb 25, 2019 World Bank : Fact Sheet: The World Bank Support to the 10th Ebola Outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo This fact sheet provides a summary of the World Bank’s efforts to contain the 10th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), including financing, technical support, and pandemic preparedness efforts (2/22). https://ift.tt/2tHfPAN

Mark Johnson Image: Concern Mark Johnson Image: Concern A DUBLIN MAN is leading a Concern Worldwide team as they work to contain a major Ebola outbreak that has so far infected 840 people and killed 537 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The number of Ebola deaths in the country has risen by 45% since the start of the year from 370 on 2 January to 537 on 17 February. At least 22 of the dead are health workers.  As the lethal virus continues to spread in North Kivu in the north-east of the country, €100,000 in emergency response funding from Irish Aid, the government’s international aid programme, has helped Concern escalate hits response to the crisis.  Concern has 180 staff in DRC, where the NGO has worked since 1994.  Their Ebola response to this outbreak, which began last August, is being led by area coordinator Mark Johnson (33) from Goatstown, Dublin.   “Our current Irish Aid programme aims to prevent the outbreak from spreadi...

KINSHASA, DR Congo - An Ebola epidemic that has killed more than 500 people in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has been brought under control in one major area, the health ministry said late Tuesday. READ:  Current Ebola outbreak is worst in Congo's history: ministry In a statement, it said there had been no new confirmed cases of Ebola in the Beni area for the past 21 days. "We can now consider that the Ebola epidemic is currently under control in Beni," it said, describing this as "major progress". The deadly haemorrhagic virus broke out last August 8 in the North Kivu region, which borders Uganda and Rwanda. READ:  WHO sees Congo's Ebola outbreak lasting 3 to 4 months Beni, a zone that includes a city of that name, accounts for 118 fatalities. The ministry cautioned that the Beni area faced the risk of further infections from neighbouring areas, notably Butembo and Katwa, where 74 cases of Ebola had been recorded in last three weeks...

World Bank Fact Sheet Outlines Group’s Efforts To Contain DRC’s Ebola Outbreak Feb 25, 2019 World Bank : Fact Sheet: The World Bank Support to the 10th Ebola Outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo This fact sheet provides a summary of the World Bank’s efforts to contain the 10th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), including financing, technical support, and pandemic preparedness efforts (2/22). https://ift.tt/2tHfPAN

Carleigh Krubiner WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization has released interim guidance supporting the immunization of pregnant and lactating women against Ebola — but only those who are health care or front-line workers — in areas neighboring the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC. The recommendation includes three types of experimental vaccines. “Such vaccination should be implemented as part of a randomized clinical trial and in compliance with [good clinical practice] and informed consent,” the group wrote. “Since these three new candidate vaccines are nonreplicating or replication deficient, pregnant and lactating women should be included into the clinical trial protocols.” In their guidance, SAGE also supported the recommendations of an ethics committee in the DRC to vaccinate pregnant women in outbreak areas using Merck’s V920 live-replicating vaccine . SAGE also acknowledged the ethics committee’s decision to vaccinate lactating women and children a...

The World Bank’s Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) will make its second contribution to the Democratic Republic of Congo Ebola response, with a $20 million grant from its cash window approved to be made. Last year the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) made its first cash disbursement, providing a $12 million grant to assist in the response to the Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. With the number of cases of Ebola and deaths still rising in the country a further $20 million grant has now been approved from the PEF’s cash window, but at this stage the pandemic catastrophe bonds, that make up a significant chunk of the PEF’s potential capacity, have not been triggered. The steering body of the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) has now approved a request from the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for up to $20 million from the so-called Cash Window. The money will be used to finance surge response activities for ...

While medical personnel and international aid agencies are working tirelessly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to fight the ongoing outbreak of the Ebola virus, a select few medical workers may be engaging in a “sex for treatment” scam. According to a report published last week in The Guardian , researchers with several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) discovered that some women in the DRC may have been asked to perform sex acts on healthcare personnel in exchange for potentially life-saving treatment, such as the Ebola vaccine. This sexual predation only adds to the cultural mistrust many Congolese already harbor against government aid workers. This culture of mistrust is further dampening relief efforts and contributing to the spread of the virus. “This region of DRC has a long history of sexual violence and exploitation of women and girls. Though shocking, this is an issue that could have been anticipated,” said Trina Helderman, who serves as Medair’s global emer...

GENEVA —  An independent advisory body convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends pregnant women and breastfeeding women in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo be vaccinated against the deadly Ebola virus. Latest WHO figures put the number of Ebola cases in the DRC at 853, including 521 deaths since the beginning of the outbreak in August. More than 80,000 people so far have been vaccinated against Ebola in the African country’s conflict-ridden North Kivu and Ituri provinces during the current outbreak. The vaccine is still in its experimental stage. But since 2015 it has been given to thousands of people in Africa, Europe and the United States. The studies of the efficacy of the vaccine are not conclusive. However, they indicate the serum is safe and protects people against Ebola. On the basis of accumulated evidence, the group of immunization experts recommends continued ring vaccination for Ebola in DRC. Ring vaccination is a strategy that prevents the spre...

Mark Johnson Image: Concern Mark Johnson Image: Concern A DUBLIN MAN is leading a Concern Worldwide team as they work to contain a major Ebola outbreak that has so far infected 840 people and killed 537 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The number of Ebola deaths in the country has risen by 45% since the start of the year from 370 on 2 January to 537 on 17 February. At least 22 of the dead are health workers.  As the lethal virus continues to spread in North Kivu in the north-east of the country, €100,000 in emergency response funding from Irish Aid, the government’s international aid programme, has helped Concern escalate hits response to the crisis.  Concern has 180 staff in DRC, where the NGO has worked since 1994.  Their Ebola response to this outbreak, which began last August, is being led by area coordinator Mark Johnson (33) from Goatstown, Dublin.   “Our current Irish Aid programme aims to prevent the outbreak from spreadi...

The Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak is continuing with moderate intensity. Katwa and Butembo remain the major health zones of concern, while simultaneously, small clusters continue to occur in various geographically dispersed locations. During the last 21 days (30 January – 19 February 2019), 79 new cases have been reported from 40 health areas within 12 health zones (Figure 1), including: Katwa (46), Butembo (15), Kyondo (4), Vuhovi (4), Kalunguta (2), Oicha (2), Biena (1), Mabalako (1), Manguredjipa (1), Masereka (1), Mutwanga (1), and Rwampara (1). 1 No new cases have been reported from the Beni in the last three weeks. This is a significant achievement given the previous intensity of the outbreak in this area. Elsewhere, trends in the case incidence (Figure 2) have been encouraging; however, other indicators (such as the continued high proportion of community deaths, persistent delays in case detection, documented local travel amongst many cases, and relatively low numbers of c...

Germany, Japan and Australia have increased their support against an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The three countries will provide an additional $20 million (€17.6 million) to the World Health Organization and the UN children's fund UNICEF. Half the sum will be used for an emergency response to the deadly haemorrhagic virus. Read more:   Top ten most dangerous viruses in the world "The world community has learned from the last Ebola epidemic in West Africa. We need to act swiftly and effectively against this devastating disease," German Development Minister Gerd Müller said on Saturday. In 2014 and 2015, an Ebola outbreak in West Africa killed more than 11,000 people.  The outbreak was contained following a sustained international response. Difficult to contain Since August, about 800 people have been infected and nearly 500 died from Ebola in the conflict-wracked North Kivu region which borders Uganda and Rwanda. Some 80,000 people, inc...

Feb 22, 2019 Bloomberg : Ebola Death Toll in Democratic Republic of Congo Climbs to 529 “The death toll from an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen … as the deadly virus persists with ‘moderate intensity,’ according to the World Health Organization…” (Shone, 2/22). CIDRAP News : More Ebola in DRC as nurse’s murder halts efforts in Vuhovi “…There are now 853 cases (788 confirmed and 65 probable), including 531 deaths, and 177 cases are still under investigation…” (Soucheray, 2/21). Xinhua News : Ebola continues to spread in DR Congo “with moderate intensity”: WHO “…Katwa and Butembo, both located in northeastern DRC, remain major zones of health concern, while simultaneously small clusters continue to occur in various geographically dispersed locations, the WHO said …” (2/22). https://ift.tt/2DZTLWQ

CONTEXT Since August 1, 2018, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been fighting its 10th Ebola outbreak in the North Kivu and Ituri provinces bordering Uganda, South Sudan and Rwanda. The World Bank is supporting the DRC government as it leads the fight to contain the Ebola outbreak, which poses a deadly threat to human life not just in the DRC but also to surrounding countries. Having successfully contained previous outbreaks, the DRC authorities and their international partners have strong experience in outbreak response. This time however, it has been complicated thanks to the security situation and more recently, political uncertainty. Community resistance to the response activities persist, while armed conflict in some areas creates a volatile security situation. The World Bank’s Role in the 10th Outbreak Financing the Response Effort The World Bank is the main financial supporter of the DRC Ebola response. Thanks to the support of the World Bank and the Pandemic Emer...

The Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and Ituri provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) grew by 5 cases today, according to the daily update from the country's ministry of health. There are now 853 cases (788 confirmed and 65 probable), including 531 deaths, and 177 cases are still under investigation. The new confirmed cases include three in Katwa and one each in Kyondo and Kalunguta. Also reported today were two community deaths in confirmed cases in Katwa. Community deaths raise the risk of transmission. The ministry of health also detailed the temporary halting of surveillance activities in Vuhovi, after a nurse from the Bisongo health center was abducted and murdered. Officials said a group of unidentified people carried out the attack. "Contrary to certain information that has circulated, the patients of the Vuhovi General Reference Hospital have not been hunted, and they continue to be cared for on site," the health ministry said, adding that it is ...

Photo taken on Dec. 10, 2014 shows that medical members receive training from a medical team of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA), to fight against Eboladisease at a hospital in Freetown, capital of Sierra Leone. (Xinhua/Dai Xin) ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- China has significantly contributed to Africa's ongoing combat against Ebola outbreak as well as to the development of the Africa Center for Disease Prevention and Control (Africa CDC), according to John Nkengasong, Africa CDC Director. Officially launched in January 2017 with its headquarters on the premises of the African Union (AU) headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, Africa CDC has been undertaking various activities, with which it has been able to support at least 9 countries to respond to 12 outbreaks, Nkengasong told Xinhua on Thursday. The Director of Africa CDC was also speaking to a press conference on Thursday at the AU headquarters on the ongoing combat against Ebola in the Democr...

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department is planning to monitor certain overseas travelers for Ebola. The health department is following guidance from state and federal health agencies to monitor returning travelers from Ebola-affected areas of Africa. Travelers returning from an outbreak area will be monitored for a 21-day period. The process is similar to public health monitoring for Ebola infection done during the last major outbreak of the virus on the African continent in 2014. According to the Health Department, no travelers have shown any signs of Ebola, and most are expected to be at low-risk for contracting the virus. https://ift.tt/2Ve8tk3

In a disappointing development today, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) health ministry reported a new Ebola case in Beni, coming just 2 days after the former outbreak epicenter had reached the hopeful mark of going a full 21-day incubation period without new illness. Today's announcement also noted five other new cases, including four from two current hot spots. In other Ebola developments, a research team from the United Kingdom and Guinea that conducted a detailed epidemiological investigation paired with antibody testing in the Guinea community where West Africa's outbreak began found evidence of eight more survivors and two probable deaths from the virus. Survivor contact suspected The newly confirmed patient from Beni was apparently exposed to the body fluids of an Ebola survivor, the ministry said in its statement today, adding that a thorough investigation and genetic sequencing is underway to determine the epidemiological links between the cases. In the ...

Feb 22, 2019 Bloomberg : Ebola Death Toll in Democratic Republic of Congo Climbs to 529 “The death toll from an outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo has risen … as the deadly virus persists with ‘moderate intensity,’ according to the World Health Organization…” (Shone, 2/22). CIDRAP News : More Ebola in DRC as nurse’s murder halts efforts in Vuhovi “…There are now 853 cases (788 confirmed and 65 probable), including 531 deaths, and 177 cases are still under investigation…” (Soucheray, 2/21). Xinhua News : Ebola continues to spread in DR Congo “with moderate intensity”: WHO “…Katwa and Butembo, both located in northeastern DRC, remain major zones of health concern, while simultaneously small clusters continue to occur in various geographically dispersed locations, the WHO said …” (2/22). https://ift.tt/2DZTLWQ

The announcement was issued on Wednesday from Beijing after a consultation meeting by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts ( SAGE ) on Immunization, which the WHO Director-General established in 1999 to provide guidance on the UN health agency’s work. Last August, the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) Ministry of Health declared a  fresh outbreak  of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in North Kivu Province. Noting that these experimental vaccines are “non-replicating or replication deficient,” SAGE concluded that “pregnant and lactating women should be included into the clinical trial protocol.” “The protocol must include provisions for safety monitoring and for documentation of EVD cases among vaccines, including follow-up of pregnant women and their offspring,” the Group stressed. According to SAGE, national authorities should choose the vaccine “based on a transparent and evidence-based process.” Meanwhile, WHO, the Health Ministry and partners continue working to es...

DRC Says Ebola Outbreak Under Control In Beni, Continues In Katwa, Butembo; Trial Underway To Evaluate Ebola Treatments Feb 20, 2019 CIDRAP News : Ebola under control in Beni amid more cases in other hot spots “In a promising development in the former Ebola hot spot of Beni, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) [Tuesday] announced that a full Ebola incubation period — 21 days — has passed without any new cases. The announcement came as the country’s health ministry reported four new cases from the current epicenters, Katwa and Butembo…” (Schnirring, 2/19). Washington Post : New Ebola treatments are being tested in Congo outbreak area “Amid the second-largest Ebola outbreak ever, the hunt for a lifesaving treatment is on. A clinical trial of patients taking place in Congo is gathering evidence on experimental therapies, to provide a proven option when the deadly virus inevitably emerges again…” (Cunningham, 2/17). Additional coverage of the DRC Ebola outbreak and respon...

Video Player Close ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- China has significantly contributed to Africa's ongoing combat against Ebola outbreak as well as to the development of the Africa Center for Disease Prevention and Control (Africa CDC), according to John Nkengasong, Africa CDC Director. Officially launched in January 2017 with its headquarters on the premises of the African Union (AU) headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, Africa CDC has been undertaking various activities, with which it has been able to support at least 9 countries to respond to 12 outbreaks, Nkengasong told Xinhua on Thursday. The Director of Africa CDC was also speaking to a press conference on Thursday at the AU headquarters on the ongoing combat against Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where he said that Africa CDC has deployed 46 health workers and experts of different areas as part of response support. The latest 10th Ebola Virus Outbreak in the DRC is reported to be the...

P regnant and breastfeeding women will be given the experimental Ebola vaccine, marking a U-turn in World Health Organization (WHO) policy.  A meeting of the WHO's expert vaccine advisory group reversed a previous decision to deny pregnant women the vaccine because there was not enough evidence of its safety. Pregnant women are usually excluded from all immunisation campaigns because vaccines against  infectious diseases like Ebola  are rarely tested or approved for use in pregnant women. This approach has led to anger among some that women are being put at unnecessarily risk during the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Studies of previous outbreaks show that between 80 and 90 per cent of all pregnant women who contracted the disease died. Very few babies of Ebola-affected mothers have survived.  But the latest recommendations from WHO's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (Sage) on immunisation said that because of the s...

Eradicating the Ebola Virus Disease from Africa requires bold leadership at different tiers of government and society, Economic Commission for Africa’s (ECA) Deputy Executive Director, Giovani Biha, said Thursday. She was speaking at a meeting called by the African Union Commission, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, and the World Health Organization to share information with member States on the Ebola Virus Disease, preparedness, vaccines and therapeutics. Ms. Biha said a committed political leadership, institutional strengthening, investments in health systems, community health and awareness were all crucial to the eradication of the disease from the continent. The ECA deputy Chief said in line with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the continent needs to mobilise adequate resources for strong and resilient health systems. “Strategic partnerships, including the role of the private sector, are also critical for a coordinated multi-sectoral response to health chal...