Ebola death toll in Congo rises to 18

Ebola
Viral Hemorrhagic Fever

Nov 26, 2003 (CIDRAP News) – The death toll in the Ebola hemorrhagic fever outbreak in the Congo has increased to 18, with a total of 36 cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported yesterday.

The outbreak involves two villages in the Mbomo district of the Cuvette Ouest Department. The villages are in the northwestern Congo, about 440 miles northwest of Brazzaville, the capital, according to a Reuters report.

The WHO said an isolation facility has been established in the area, and contact tracing and other containment efforts were continuing. WHO staff members were working on the effort with the Congo Ministry of Health and Medecins sans Frontieres.

The outbreak is believed to have started after a group of hunters ate a dead boar they found in the forest, according to the Reuters report. Ebola fever has no cure and is often fatal.

See also:

WHO Nov 25 news release
http://www.who.int/csr/don/2003_11_25a/en/

CIDRAP overview of viral hemorrhagic fevers, including Ebola

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