Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Director-General Jean Kaseya warned that the Ebola outbreak centered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo could spread to up to 12 countries, calling it the second-largest Ebola outbreak since the West Africa epidemic a decade ago.
Kaseya said the outbreak was initially difficult to detect because early tests only checked for the more common Zaire strain of Ebola. Later testing in Kinshasa confirmed the rarer Bundibugyo strain, which currently has no approved vaccine or targeted treatment.
He criticized the lack of vaccine development for the strain, saying more progress would likely have been made if the disease had affected Europe or the United States.
Health officials across East and Central Africa are now increasing border checks, isolation measures and contact tracing as fears grow over wider regional spread. Despite the challenges, Kaseya said African health systems have much stronger Ebola response experience compared to previous outbreaks.
Credit : CGTN
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