The fight to contain the current spread of the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has reached a grim development after the African nation confirmed recording over 7,000 patients suffering from the disease.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the situation could get worse until a vaccine becomes available to the public.
Background and current circumstances
The DRC is facing its 17th Ebola epidemic, caused by a rare strain called the Bundibugyo virus that has pushed reported cases to 7,022 while deaths are at 3,398, according to the figures provided by the Congolese authorities.
They added that 837 are currently isolated and receiving treatment.
Authorities said that the current epidemic – affecting at least seven provinces – is seen as the worst in DRC’s history, and is feared to surpass its previous Ebola epidemic that lasted between 2014 and 2016 and was caused by the Zaire virus strain.
The case has affected many Congolese provinces and has even reached neighboring West African nations, while killing 11,325 people.
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The response
Unfortunately, a vaccine against the Bundibugyo virus strain has not yet been discovered, as clinical trials are still ongoing.
But the WHO has been financing two independent clinical trials to produce a vaccine that could be used to fight the spread of the Ebola virus.
The first drug is in an experimental stage called monoclonal antibody (MBP134) and has shown positive development, while the other potential vaccine is remdesivir, which has been key in containing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
The Congolese government has begun processing to release the Ervebo vaccine – used to stop the spread of the Zaire virus strain more than a decade ago – hoping that it could do the same against the Bundibugyo strain.
Speculation of where and how the spread began
The first patient thought to have shown symptoms of the Ebola virus with the Bundibugyo virus was a nurse who complained of fever-like illness on April 24.
Unconfirmed reports claimed that the nurse was misdiagnosed with malaria or typhoid.
The unidentified patient then succumbed and was repatriated to his family.
Health officials said that the virus could have spread further after the family members of the deceased were exposed to the infected corpse.
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Breaking the chain is the key, says WHO chief
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called for a collective response against the current Ebola epidemic in DRC, saying the situation poses a greater threat to other Congolese communities, as well as to the country’s neighbors and to the region.
He said that it is imperative to “break the transmission chain” that keeps the virus spreading; only then would the epidemic eventually slow down and later on stop spreading.
He also admitted that there is a lack of concrete data indicating the exact number of transmission chains in DRC due to poor or lack of contact tracing in most communities.
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