JamzNG Latest News, Gist, Entertainment in Nigeria
Why this is important
- The third largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded.
- Most new infections originate from unknown chains of transmission.
- The virus has spread beyond the original outbreak area.
- Early detection and global support are essential.
Speaking to journalists in Geneva after returning from Bunia in eastern Congo’s Ituri province, which is the epicenter of the outbreak, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, Executive Director WHOThe Health Emergency Program said that with nearly 2,000 confirmed cases and more than 700 deaths across five provinces as of July 11, the outbreak is the third largest ever.
“We have seen the fastest growth in one month since the outbreak began and of all other growth Ebola outbreak that we have dealt with,” he said.
“Over the past few days, we have seen the highest number of new infections in a single day,” added Dr Ihekweazu, including more than 80 confirmed cases in 24 hours.
Known unknown things
Many of the newly reported deaths were people who died in their communities without ever reaching a health facility or receiving treatment – and this was described by WHO officials as “the most worrying finding”.
Despite progress in diagnosis and high contact follow-up rates, “80 per cent of new cases are outside our contact list and thus come from unknown chains of transmission,” Dr Ihekweazu warned.
The current outbreak was announced nearly two months ago and WHO modeling suggests the scale could reach “at least two to four times” the number of reported cases.
“You have to imagine this is fire,” Dr Ihekweazu said. “There was something that sparked a fire in his heart, and at the same time it grew bigger.”
Although 95 percent of new Ebola cases come from Ituri Province, where the outbreak began, the virus has recently spread to two new provinces, Haut-Uele and Tshopo.
The WHO official outlined two strategies for this response: continuing to apply pressure to the core of the outbreak in Ituri and at the same time, “understanding the travel routes… and really mapping out where the risk of new cases is emerging.”
Urging the international community not to “despair” in the face of the rapid spread of the disease, the WHO official emphasized that the efforts made had borne fruit.
“Now is not the time to throw the ball away,” he warned.
Therapeutic trials are ongoing
Several therapies are undergoing clinical trials but there are no approved treatments for Bundibugyo species Ebola patients. However, the chances of survival increase significantly with early supportive care.
“We have to find these cases early, get them into care as soon as possible” to reduce community transmission and avoid getting behind the curve, Dr Ihekweazu said.
When asked about recent attacks on healthcare workers and facilities, he explained that the solution lies in “being open and transparent” about the services provided.
“Before the new health center opened, we invited community leaders to see what had been done” and talked to health care providers who had left their homes to support the measure, he said.
Preventing attacks on health services depends on building public trust in new facilities and demonstrating this to the public “They won’t be left alone – not only will they be cared for, they will also be offered food, they will also have access to their families.”.
As the fight to stop the spread of Ebola in Congo continues, Dr Ihekweazu spoke of “the dissonance between the threat we face and the efforts we are making to respond to it.”
“We need the world to unite, not just for charity or support for Congo, but for our own best interests. The more we do now, the better position we will be in the future,” he stressed.
WHO officials said that at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Member States were negotiating key parts of the agreement WHO Pandemic AgreementPathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) annex, which aims to ensure that genetic information about dangerous pathogens with pandemic potential is disseminated quickly and vaccines and treatments are available to developing countries.
