Winning the battle against Ebola in the DRC
Meanwhile... The Ebola epidemic could be coming to an end in the Democratic Republic of Congo. (via Brut News)
42 Day Rule
Since the declaration of the epidemic in DRC, the second worst in history, in August 2018, the disease has claimed 2,264 victims. However the Dominican Republic of Congo
is currently winning the battle against the Ebola virus. The World Health Organization has declared a 42-day rule where once patients with Ebola have been cured, they have to wait 42 days before declaring the end of the epidemic, double the traditional incubation time. After this period, and with no new cases, the epidemic will be considered contained and the country must maintain enhanced surveillance for 90 days.
“The reservoir is found in bats, which in turn can bite wild animals. Bushmeat hunters, if they consume meat that isn’t well-cooked or they handle an animal that has died from Ebola, because of the infection transmitted by bats, they can in turn contract the disease and spread it in their villages. From there, the epidemic can get going and set off a cycle of interhuman transmission…The risks of a new epidemic with the same origins I’ve just described are still there. However, what we are managing to deal with are the risks of a new outbreak of the epidemic transmitted via - as I was saying - the bodily fluids of people who’ve been cured and via sexual transmission in particular. The virus can remain in sperm for up to 19 months. We are in the research stage. For Ebola, nothing is certain,” Dr. Guido Cornale, the UNICEF coordinator of the DRC, shares with Brut.
Two epidemics
Even though the Dominican Republic of Congo is working towards containing Ebola, they are still fighting against a measles epidemic. The fight against Ebola has been present in the country since 1976. Symptoms that are unremarkable in themselves, namely migraines, fever, but then these symptoms got drastically worse, transforming into a massive hemorrhage, followed almost immediately by death. However there is an effect vaccine that should be available around June.
Brut.
42 Day Rule
Since the declaration of the epidemic in DRC, the second worst in history, in August 2018, the disease has claimed 2,264 victims. However the Dominican Republic of Congo
is currently winning the battle against the Ebola virus. The World Health Organization has declared a 42-day rule where once patients with Ebola have been cured, they have to wait 42 days before declaring the end of the epidemic, double the traditional incubation time. After this period, and with no new cases, the epidemic will be considered contained and the country must maintain enhanced surveillance for 90 days.
“The reservoir is found in bats, which in turn can bite wild animals. Bushmeat hunters, if they consume meat that isn’t well-cooked or they handle an animal that has died from Ebola, because of the infection transmitted by bats, they can in turn contract the disease and spread it in their villages. From there, the epidemic can get going and set off a cycle of interhuman transmission…The risks of a new epidemic with the same origins I’ve just described are still there. However, what we are managing to deal with are the risks of a new outbreak of the epidemic transmitted via - as I was saying - the bodily fluids of people who’ve been cured and via sexual transmission in particular. The virus can remain in sperm for up to 19 months. We are in the research stage. For Ebola, nothing is certain,” Dr. Guido Cornale, the UNICEF coordinator of the DRC, shares with Brut.
Two epidemics
Even though the Dominican Republic of Congo is working towards containing Ebola, they are still fighting against a measles epidemic. The fight against Ebola has been present in the country since 1976. Symptoms that are unremarkable in themselves, namely migraines, fever, but then these symptoms got drastically worse, transforming into a massive hemorrhage, followed almost immediately by death. However there is an effect vaccine that should be available around June.
Brut.