Congo Reports Over 10,000 Ebola Cases, Sparking Concerns of Wider Spread

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) reported 10,000 confirmed cases of Ebola this week, with nearly 4000+ deaths. Health officials are now concerned that numbers may soon reach a point of inflection where cross-border spread and rampant infection throughout the continent may become impossible to contain.

Other countries, including Kenya, Nigeria and Uganda have also reported numerous cases in recent weeks. Public health officials both at the global level and national front are rushing to mobilize care for those affected in addition to public health resources to help manage the rapid spread of the disease.

This week, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also provided an update regarding the evolving situation: "This outbreak is spreading substantially faster than previous Ebola outbreaks and is now the second-largest Ebola outbreak on record.... [and] The response to this outbreak is challenging due to a number of complex circumstances in the region." Some of the complexities the agency cites include challenges in health infrastructure and access to care locally, ongoing violence and conflict across certain regions, and consistent lack of trust in public health initiatives.

Governments including the United States have also issued strict quarantine and return to home guidelines for travelers: "All U.S. citizens and U.S. nationals who have been in DRC should plan to remain outside DRC for 21 days before entering the United States. This includes all passengers with an intermediate stop in DRC or on multi-stop itineraries via DRC regardless of whether they disembark or stay on the airplane."

The World Health Organization explains that Ebola symptoms can be somewhat elusive and easily confused for other common ailments; standard symptoms include "fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache and sore throat...vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, internal and external bleeding etc." It also explains that timelines and testing are important aspects of confirmatory diagnosis: "The time interval from infection to onset of symptoms ranges from 2 to 21 days....Even when people have developed Ebola disease-like symptoms, only a laboratory test can confirm whether the cause is Ebola."

Unfortunately, treatment options are typically limited and Ebola is notorious for high mortality rates. The best way for patients to be safe is to ensure that they do not expose themselves to the virus or to people that may be transmitting the virus.

Although Ebola breakouts by no means are new, this is a rapidly evolving situation that requires close attention from the international public heath community.