Congo confirms more than 6,000 Ebola cases, almost 3,000 deaths

More than 6,000 people have contracted the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the current outbreak, and 2,911 of them have died, the Information Ministry reported in Kinshasa on Monday.

Experts believe there is a high number of unreported cases. At present, 619 people are reported to be in isolation or receiving treatment.

The current outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of the disease has been particularly difficult to contain, partly because there is so far neither a specific vaccine nor a specific treatment.

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced the outbreak in mid-May. Given the already high number of cases at the time, experts believe that the first Ebola infections may have occurred undetected as early as February.

The north-eastern province of Ituri was initially affected. Cases have now been reported in six provinces of Africa’s second-largest country by area.

Clinical trials of two antiviral treatments have been under way since early July. In addition, a clinical trial involving the Ervebo vaccine began last week. Ervebo is approved for the more common Zaire strain of the virus.

According to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), suspicions that the Bundibugyo strain may have mutated have not been confirmed.