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June 13: Uganda repatriates Ebola suspects in Congo
Authorities in Uganda on Thursday banned public gatherings in Kasese district (west), where two people died of the Ebola virus.
Relatives of the two dead from the Ebola virus have also been repatriated from Uganda to the Democratic Republic of Congo, where they will receive experimental and therapeutic treatment.
"Handwashing facilities have been put in place, with washing equipment such as JIK (bleach) and soap. Local reporter Ronald Kule told Reuters that people are not shaking hands.
This is the first confirmed case in Uganda during the Ebola outbreak in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
While repatriation means there is no confirmed case of Ebola in Uganda as of Thursday, three more suspected cases of non-family-related Ebola remain isolated, said the health ministry.
"Uganda remains in Ebola response mode to follow the 27 contacts (family)," reads a statement from the Ugandan Ministry of Health.
At the same time, Red Cross teams have embarked on an Ebola awareness campaign in Uganda.DRC border area as a result of confirmed cases of the disease.
Manage a porous border
Ugandan Minister of Health, Jane Ruth Aceng, said difficulties remained at the "unofficial entry points" between Congo and Uganda, which share a porous 875-kilometer (545-mile) border. .
These unauthorized border crossings, known as "panyas" in the local language, are often simple planks laid on a point of the river, or through unsupervised forests and mountains.
The family, who had been repatriated Thursday, had left the Congo to travel to Uganda earlier this week and sought treatment when a 5-year-old boy became ill. He died of Ebola on Tuesday. Her 50-year-old grandmother, who accompanied them, died of the disease on Wednesday, the ministry said.
June 11th: WHO emergency meeting scheduled for June 14
The World Health Organization has announced that an emergency committee would meet on Friday to determine whether to improve its assessment of the situation to turn it into a "public health emergency." international scope ".
WHOin October and again in April, stated that the DRC the epidemic is an urgent matter of international concern because the epidemic has been circumscribed to a part of DRC.
In order for the committee to make an emergency appeal, it must determine that the epidemic "has consequences for public health beyond the national border of the affected state and may require immediate international action".
If such a statement is made on Friday, this will represent a major shift in mobilization against the disease.
The worried experts
The current Ebola outbreak began last August in eastern Congo and has already infected at least 2,062 people, of whom 1,390 were killed.
"This outbreak is in a truly frightening phase and shows no sign of immediate arrest," said Jeremy Farrar, infectious disease specialist and director of the global Wellcome Trust, which fights against the disease. Ebola virus.
"We can expect and should plan more cases in DRC and neighboring countries, "he said, adding," With the exception of the West Africa epidemic of 2013-2016, there are now more than deaths than any other Ebola outbreak, and there is no doubt that the situation could escalate to such levels. "
The Red Cross has announced that it is intensifying its efforts to contain the spread of the virus since its discovery in Uganda.
"This is a worrying development, but we have been preparing this day for months," said Robert Kwesiga, secretary general of the Ugandan Red Cross, in a statement released Wednesday.
The experts noted that Uganda, which is very vigilant against the possible spread of the Ebola virus and has already vaccinated many front-line health workers, is relatively well prepared and should be able to limit the spread of the virus.
"Current cases in Uganda will be quickly contained, but failure to stop the current Ebola outbreak DRC is simply tragic, "said Ian Jones, professor of virology at the British University of Reading.
Agencies
Brief: Preparing Uganda for Ebola
Since the beginning of the epidemic in August in eastern Congo, the Ministry of Health of Congo announced Monday to have recorded 2,062 cases, including 1,390 deaths.
Neighboring Uganda has regularly suffered epidemics of Ebola and Marburg, two very fatal viral haemorrhagic fevers. Health facilities for treating diseases are relatively robust.
A donor-supported laboratory in Entebbe, a lakeside town south of the capital Kampala, means that Uganda generally confirms outbreaks much faster than many of its neighbors.
In anticipation of possible cases of Ebola, Uganda has vaccinated nearly 4,700 health workers, surveillance of the disease has been intensified, special treatment units have been created and agents of health have been trained to recognize the symptoms of the disease. WHO I said.
The worst Ebola outbreak in Uganda was in 2000, when 425 people were infected. More than half of them are dead.
REUTERS
June 11: Ebola deaths recorded
To date, at least two people have died from the Ebola virus in Uganda, following Tuesday's confirmation of the deadly virus being transferred to the country.
The five-year-old Congolese child who was the first recorded case in Uganda and his grandmother both succumbed to the virus at Bwere General Hospital, where an isolation center was set up.
Authorities are now worried about the spread of the outbreak after confirmation of new cases on Wednesday.
"Two more samples … have been tested positive," the agency told the World Health Organization on Twitter, citing the health minister and bringing to three the total number of confirmed cases.
The local news channel, Daily Monitor, said the number of Ebola cases in the country had risen to 10, citing Health Minister Ruth Aceng, who said he There were seven other suspects, including two men, two women, and a six-month-old baby. from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
June 10: confirmation of the Ebola virus in Uganda
A case of Ebola was confirmed in Uganda, ten months after the confirmation of the deadly virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The 5-year-old Congolese child, who entered Uganda on 9 June from the Bwera border post, is receiving treatment, the World Health Organization (WHO) (WHO) said Tuesday.
"This is the first case confirmed in Uganda during the Ebola outbreak in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo," said WHO said in a statement.
The child's family requested medical care at Kagando Hospital and the child was transferred to the Bwera Ebola Treatment Unit for treatment, WHO I said.
"Confirmation was made today by the Uganda Virus Institute (UVRI) … Contacts are monitored, " WHO I said.
How the Ebola Victim arrived in Uganda
The boy was accompanied by his Ugandan father and his Congolese mother, who had returned to Congo to care for his father before his death, said Ugandan Minister of Health, Jane Ruth Aceng, at a press conference.
The family returned to Uganda with four other family members of Congolese origin, said Aceng. All other members of the Congolese family are isolated at Bwera hospital. Two of them have already developed symptoms similar to those of Ebola and samples have been taken, said Aceng.
The test results are expected Wednesday. Eight other contacts are followed, said Aceng.
Aceng stated that his family had entered Uganda on June 10, not the 9th. The reason for the discrepancy was unclear and the WHO nor was the government available for clarification.
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