Ebola virus disease – Democratic Republic of the Congo

On 1 August 2018, the Ministry of Health of the Democratic Republic of the Congo declared a new outbreak of Ebola virus disease in North Kivu Province, in the eastern part of the country. North Kivu is among the most populated provinces in the country, shares borders with Uganda and Rwanda, and experiences conflict and insecurity, with over one million internally displaced people and migration of refugees to neighbouring countries.

The Ministry of Health, WHO and partners are continuing to strengthen activities across all key response pillars. As of 7 August 2018, 44 Ebola virus disease cases (17 confirmed and 27 probable), including 36 deaths, have been reported in North Kivu and Ituri provinces. This includes sporadic, antecedent deaths in affected communities since May 2018, which were identified from clinical records and tentatively classified as probable cases pending further investigations. Two healthcare workers (one confirmed and one probable) have been affected, of which one has died. Confirmed or probable cases are localised to five health zones in North Kivu, and one neighbouring health zone in Ituri Province. The majority of cases (13 confirmed, 21 probable) have been reported from Mabalako Health Zone (Figure 1). An additional 47 suspected cases are currently pending laboratory testing to confirm or exclude Ebola virus disease.

On 6 August 2018, the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB) confirmed by genetic sequencing that this latest outbreak is caused by the Zaire ebolavirusspecies, and is not related to the recent outbreak in Équateur Province.