The miracle of a child's survival after the deadly outbreak of Ebola in the DRC

A baby from the Democratic Republic of Congo has become a medical miracle and a symbol of the deadly Ebola virus after surviving the epidemic and only six days old, health officials said.

Benoît's mother was infected with the Ebola virus, died at birth and the epidemic was pbaded on to the girl, who became known as the "miracle of me" after her recovery.

The symptoms of the virus did not appear until a few days later and it took five weeks to treat the virus and keep it alive.

Benedict left the hospital on Wednesday and returned home with his father and aunt.

"His father, Thomas, was very upset," a spokesman for the Congolese ministry told the BBC. "She is her first child".

Ebola has become a deadly epidemic and infection in Africa, causing severe fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and internal and external bleeding.

The probability of survival is low and nearly half of those infected die, children are at higher risk and their chances of survival are lower.

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The youngest patient

During this epidemic, there were 27 cases of Ebola among children under 1 year of age, 21 of whom died.

Survival stories such as Benedict's are rare.

She was born on October 31, 2018 and was treated and treated at the Beni Ebola Treatment Center, which was the hardest hit by the epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

As the youngest victim of the epidemic, she has received much attention from doctors and volunteers.

The girl became known as "Penny Miracle".

What is Ebola?

Ebola is a viral disease that kills 50% of infected people.

The first symptoms of the disease are sudden fever, muscle aches and sore throats.

Then the patient has vomiting and diarrhea, and in some developed cases there are internal and external bleeding.

Humans become ill as a result of serious contact with infected animals, including chimpanzees, fruit barks and antelopes.

The infected person is the source of infection as long as the blood and secretions of his body are loaded with the virus and can last more than seven weeks before healing.

"Alarming"

The Ebola epidemic in the DRC is now the second largest epidemic in history.

The latest figures show that there are 515 cases and 303 deaths.

Since October, about 33 people have been infected each week, in addition to transmission to children and women.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said the situation in the country was "worrisome" and that there remained "a very high risk" of spreading the disease.

The country was able to use new tools that were not available in previous outbreaks.

The Ebola vaccine was administered to nearly 45,000 people and, for the first time, many experimental Ebola drugs were tested.

But efforts to contain the virus have been hampered by conflict in the region, with more than one million displaced people and refugees settling in neighboring countries.

Armed groups prevent health workers from doing what is necessary to deal with the epidemic, including seeking out people who may be in contact with infected people.

Health officials are also trying to manage three separate epidemics of polio, cholera and malaria.

Congo's neighboring countries are preparing for cross-border situations, Uganda has already begun vaccinating health workers and South Sudan is also expected to launch a vaccination campaign against the epidemic.

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