Ebola Virus Disease

A research group today published full results from a clinical trial of four Ebola therapies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) outbreak, in which preliminary findings in August led health officials to push the pause button to steer patients into groups to receive two treatments that stood out as most promising. An international research group, which includes renowned Ebola researcher and DRC health official Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum, MD, published its findings in the New England Journal of Medicine ( NEJM ). Study fleshes out preliminary findings In August, an independent board that was monitoring the study in people treated in DRC Ebola treatment units took an early look at the data and saw that mortality rates were significantly lower in those who received the monoclonal antibody cocktail REGN-EB3 (made by Regeneron of Tarrytown, New York) and the single monoclonal antibody mAb 114, developed from antibodies of an Ebola survivor. The other two therapies in the tria...

Mackenzie Bean - Wednesday, November 27th, 2019 Print  |  Email Increased violence from militia groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo spurred the World Health Organization to pull one-third of its workforce from an Ebola outbreak zone this week, reports Nature . The organization temporarily evacuated about 40 people from the city of Beni. The remaining 80 team members stationed in the city have mostly halted efforts to trace and vaccinate known contacts of Ebola patients, thereby hindering outbreak containment efforts. The WHO expects Ebola cases to rise as a result, according to Christian Lindmeier, a spokesperson for the health agency.  As of Nov. 27, the WHO has reported 3,304 confirmed and probable Ebola cases linked to the outbreak, including 2,198 deaths. More articles on clinical leadership & infection control: New Jersey hospital performs kidney transplant on wrong patient Consistent hospitalist care linked to better patient outcomes, study f...

The current Ebola outbreak in  Democratic Republic of Congo  (DRC) is the worst on record in the country and the second-largest epidemic of the disease recorded anywhere. Almost a year after the declaration of  the outbreak , more than 2,195 people have died from the virus. The Ebola crisis in DRC continues to pose a threat to local communities—despite a massive international response,  promising new vaccines  and  treatments , and improvements in the medical management of the disease. On July 17, 2019, the World Health Organization declared the Ebola outbreak in DRC a public health emergency of international concern. Ebola is not the only public health emergency in DRC. The main causes of mortality in the country’s eastern region remain preventable diseases such as  malaria  and  measles . In many health zones, only limited health care is available, as was the case even before the Ebola epidemic. Many health workers have also now been r...

Protesters targeted UN facilities again in eastern DR Congo on Tuesday with at least two people killed as anger rises over the failure to stop deadly attacks on civilians  by rebels.  Omar Aboud, the United Nations chief of military forces in Beni, said no live ammunition was fired by UN forces at the attacking protesters in the town of Beni in North Kivu province . "We are aware of the demonstrators who are making their way and we are making every effort to continue the dialogue with these demonstrators and their leaders, as well as the national authorities ... to ensure calm and return to peace and security," Aboud told Al Jazeera. "We have our troops and our police officers who are trained in riot control and who provided protection to our compound while it was being attacked for hours at a time." In Tuesday's violence, an AFP news agency reporter saw the body of one young man with a head wound, lying about 50 metres from the UN camp. Malawian UN troops...

situation report 1 MIN READ Nov 26, 2019 | 16:29 GMT What Happened: A recent surge of violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's northeastern city of Beni has prompted aid agencies to suspend efforts to contain an outbreak of Ebola, AP reported Nov. 26. Why It Matters: The suspension of efforts to contain the most recent Ebola outbreak increases the risk the disease will spread in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and perhaps to neighboring countries. Continued violence will also disrupt transportation and logistical networks in the area, while militant groups will attempt to exploit the ensuing chaos to launch additional attacks. Background: The most recent Ebola outbreak began in August 2018 and has killed more than 2,100 people to date, making it the second-deadliest outbreak of the disease ever. Militant activity has been hampering efforts to contain the epidemic and the World Health Organization has documented more than 300 attacks ...

Summary Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) declared their tenth outbreak of Ebola in 40 years on 1 August 2018. The outbreak is centred in the northeast of the country, in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, with cases also now appearing in South Kivu. With the number of cases having surpassed 3,000, it is now by far the country's largest-ever Ebola outbreak. It is also the second-biggest Ebola epidemic ever recorded, behind the West Africa outbreak of 2014-2016. During the first eight months of the epidemic, until March 2019, more than 1,000 cases of Ebola were reported in the affected region. However, between April and June 2019, this number doubled, with a further 1,000 new cases reported in just those three months. Between early June and the beginning of August, the number of new cases notified per week was high, and averaged between 75 and 100 each week; since August, this rate has been slowly declining, with just 70 cases identified throughout all of October. Latest figures...

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) today said Ebola response operations in two hot spots remain paralyzed for the sixth day in a row, which could prolong the outbreak, amid a report of an attack on a United Nation peacekeeping office in Beni. In other developments, 4 new cases were reported over the weekend and through today, raising the outbreak total past 3,300 to 3,303. Violence strikes Beni UN peacekeeping facility Last week, the WHO said violence between the Democratic Republic of the Congo's (DRC's) military and local members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which is considered a rebel terrorist organization, is on the rise. Civilian deaths have occurred following the clashes over the past few weekends, including in Beni. The developments, which also include local protests against the ADF and military violence, brought Ebola outbreak response to a standstill in Beni and Butembo. Military action has also hindered the Ebola response in two other hot ...

BENI, Congo — Ebola responders are on lockdown in the eastern Congo city of Beni after angry residents attacked a United Nations base to protest repeated rebel assaults, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. At least four protesters were killed, a local official said. Every day that health workers don’t have full access to Ebola-affected areas is a “tragedy” that prolongs the second-worst Ebola outbreak in history, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Twitter. Beni residents are outraged that rebels continue to carry out deadly attacks despite the presence of U.N. peacekeepers and Congolese forces. Some demand that the U.N. mission act or leave. The bodies of four young protesters were found near the U.N. base after Monday’s attack, Kumbu Ngoma with Beni’s military court told The Associated Press on Tuesday. Investigations continued into the cause of their deaths. Six Congolese soldiers were wounded by gunfire near the base, Ngoma added. Congo’s Pre...

On this episode of Healthy Living, an update on the Ebola outbreak in the DRC. The President of Concern Worldwide U.S. Aine Fay joins us in studio for more on what is being called an international emergency. We also discuss with the Former Prime Minister Of Togo Gilbert Houngbo about hunger being on the rise in Africa. And, whether or not spicy foods can cause stomach ulcers in our “True or False” segment and how researchers in Brazil are inventing traps to catch mosquitos that cause illness. All these topics and more on Healthy Living this week. S1, E6 https://ift.tt/33judif

CIDRAP News : WHO official highlights Ebola security challenges: ‘We are so close’ “[Friday] Mike Ryan, MD, the World Health Organization (WHO) executive director of health emergencies, spotlighted recent violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and its impact on the Ebola outbreak response and issued a dire warning. ‘We just want to express how alarmed we are that a lack of access and security is now preventing us from ending the outbreak,’ Ryan said. ‘At this stage of the outbreak, one case matters, one case can reignite the outbreak, and means the virus can get ahead of us again’…” (Soucheray, 11/22). The Guardian : Children bear the brunt as the world’s biggest measles epidemic sweeps Congo “More than 5,000 people, mostly children, have been killed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in what is currently the world’s biggest measles epidemic. Measles, which is preventable through vaccination, has spread to all 26 provinces of the country, which is also battlin...

The new mobile lab was born out of scientists’ “frustration” about the lack of infrastructure during the West-African Ebola outbreak  M. Enserink/ Science By Martin Enserink Nov. 24, 2019 , 5:15 PM NATIONAL HARBOR, MARYLAND—During the next Ebola outbreak, this brand new vehicle might come to the rescue. It’s a lab onwheels that some scientists say could greatly improve the response to disease outbreaks and epidemics. It can be flown in to trouble spots by plane and driven to even the most remote locations and has everything on board needed to rapidly diagnose patients or carry out research studies.  A prototype was parked outside a conference center here the past week during the annual conference of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. The company that developed it, U.S.-based Integrum Scientific, says the first vehicle may soon be tested in Uganda, which occasionally has outbreaks of Ebola and a related virus, Marburg. The idea was born out...

Speaking in Geneva, Dr Mike Ryan, Executive Director for the WHO Health Emergencies programme, told journalists that while “98 per cent” of infection in the last three weeks could be traced back to two different routes, or chains of transmission, a third one had been identified in Oicha health zone, North Kivu.  “This individual who turned out to be a community death had visited three separate health care centres in the Oicha area before being detected”, the WHO official said. “(He) was a moto driver himself and when his colleagues in the moto driver group learned of this death, they came to sympathise and the body was manipulated by a large number of colleagues and friends”.  Active transmission in an area where there has been active military engagement. No one predicted that - Dr Mike Ryan, WHO According to   WHO , the death can be linked to health zones in Kalunguta, Mandima, Mabalako and Beni, in addition to Oicha.  “Right now, we know of over 200 con...

The World Health Organization warns escalating violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo's North Kivu and Ituri provinces is threatening to reverse major gains made in bringing the region's Ebola epidemic to an end. The agency reports 3,298 cases of Ebola, including 2195 deaths, resulting in an overall fatality rate of 67%. Health officials are pleased with the progress that has been made in tackling the Ebola outbreak in recent weeks.  Last week, the World Health Organization recorded only seven cases of this deadly disease, an all-time low. Unfortunately, the agency says an uptick in violence between the national army, FARDC, and the rebel Allied Democratic Forces is threatening these gains. Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies program Mike Ryan says the prevailing lack of access and lack of security is a major obstacle to international efforts to prevent the Ebola virus from spreading. "We believe we have the resources on the ground from a public he...

GENEVA - The World Health Organization warns escalating violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo's North Kivu and Ituri provinces is threatening to reverse major gains made in bringing the region’s Ebola epidemic to an end.   The agency reports 3,298 cases of Ebola, including 2195 deaths, resulting in an overall fatality rate of 67%. Health officials are pleased with the progress that has been made in tackling the Ebola outbreak in recent weeks.  Last week, the World Health Organization recorded only seven cases of this deadly disease, an all-time low. Unfortunately, the agency says an uptick in violence between the national army, FARDC, and the rebel Allied Democratic Forces is threatening these gains.   Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies program Mike Ryan says the prevailing lack of access and lack of security is a major obstacle to international efforts to prevent the Ebola virus from spreading.       “We believe we have...

A Direct Relief shipment of personal protective equipment will aid Goma's Ebola treatment center. By Talya Meyers A Direct Relief shipment designed to fight the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has reached its destination. The shipment, which contains masks, coveralls, tents, and other personal protective equipment (often abbreviated as PPE), has been delivered to an Ebola response center in Goma, in the province of North Kivu. “The ability to safely treat folks with Ebola…requires access to PPE. That’s a vital way to prevent its spread and to protect healthcare workers and patients,” said Dr. Myron Glick, the founder and CEO of Jericho Road, an international aid organization and Direct Relief partner that received the shipment. North Kivu is the epicenter of an Ebola outbreak that began in August of 2018 and has claimed nearly 2,200 lives. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak an international public health emergency in July of 2019. Response...

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Transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of an Ebola virus virion. Getty Images Civil unrest may have worsened the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to a new study by Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences researcher Dr. Martial Ndeffo. Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS), the research team—including scholars from Yale University, the University of Florida, and the University of Bordeaux—found that disruptive events, such as attacks on Ebola treatment centers and healthcare workers, reduced population-level vaccine effectiveness in the DRC by 43 percent. Prior to disruptive events, the population-level vaccine effectiveness was estimated to be 52 percent; in the observed period of conflict, it was estimated to reach a minimum of 4.8 percent. The eastern DRC is facing one of its most severe Ebola outbreaks on record, with 2,084 cases ...

Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi says he's hopeful the Ebola outbreak in his country will end in the coming weeks. Tshisekedi said Friday a few cases of the deadly contagious disease remain in the eastern province of Ituri but "we think we can end it completely by the end of the year." Over 2,000 people have died in the outbreak which the United Nations declared an international emergency in July. The number of reported infections has since dropped significantly. Speaking in Berlin after meeting German Chancellor Angela Merkel , Tshisekedi said he's willing to work with any country interested in Congo's vast natural resources, including China and Russia. Tshisekedi also said that while he has "good" relations with longtime Congo leader Joseph Kabila, his predecessor's role is merely to provide advice. Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. htt...

Reuters : Congo president says Ebola outbreak should be over this year “An outbreak of Ebola in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo should be eradicated by the end of 2019, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi said on Friday. … ‘There are still a few isolated cases in Ituri (province) but we think that by the end of the year we can completely stop that,’ Tshisekedi said at a news conference in Berlin alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel…” (Escritt et al, 11/16). Xinhua : A.U. urges domestic, int’l partners to help tackle Ebola as death toll reaches 2,193 “The African Union (A.U.) has called on African and international partners to exert concerted efforts in the fight against the Ebola virus epidemic as the death toll from the ongoing Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) had climbed to 2,193…” (11/16). Additional coverage of the DRC Ebola outbreak and response is available from Al Jazeera and Xinhua . https://ift.tt/2XoI5q2

The world finally has its first ever approved Ebola vaccine. Within 48 hours of the European Commission approving the vaccine earlier this week, the World Health Alliance (WHO) verified that the treatment also reached its health and safety standards for global use, making it the first vaccine with clinical efficacy to protect individuals 18 years of age or older at risk of infection with the Ebola virus. The Ervebo vaccine, which was developed by pharmaceutical company Merck, has already been used to quell emergency outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and several other neighboring countries . Data from clinical trials and compassionate use protocols have shown that Ervebo protects against Ebola virus disease in humans following a single-dose administration. The vaccine is being used under “compassionate use” to protect people, including children and pregnant women, at highest risk of infection as part of a ring vaccination strategy, as well as a targeted geograph...