Open Outbreak

Should I be worried about Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda?

Updated · Graded from official assessments; nothing here is medical advice.

Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda · high

If you are in the affected area high
WHO said on 8 October that the risk in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was assessed as very high, and in its 3 July update it assessed Uganda as high. Those are WHO’s published assessments for the affected countries. According to WHO
If you are elsewhere in the same country or region high
WHO’s country-level assessments are high or above in the affected countries: on 8 October it said risk in DRC was very high, and on 3 July it assessed Uganda as high. No newer WHO country-level assessment for Uganda was available here. According to WHO
If you are travelling there soon high
WHO said, in the assessment restated on 8 October, that the risk for countries sharing land borders with the Democratic Republic of the Congo was high. In the same update, WHO advised against restrictions on travel to, or trade with, affected countries. According to WHO
If you are elsewhere in the world low
WHO said on 8 October that the risk for the rest of the African Region and at global level was low. That is WHO’s latest published assessment for people elsewhere in the world. According to WHO

What is happening

WHO’s latest public updates describe a large Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with epidemiologically linked transmission in Uganda and a laboratory-confirmed imported case in Kenya linked to travel from DRC through Uganda. In its 8 October Disease Outbreak News update, covering data to 6 October, WHO reported 8,728 confirmed cases and 4,205 confirmed deaths in DRC across 64 health zones in seven provinces: Bas-Uélé, Haut-Uélé, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Sud Ubangi and Tshopo. For Uganda, the most recent WHO count available here is older: 20 confirmed cases, two deaths, and one probable death as of 2 July. Later media and state-wire reports citing named officials described higher totals, ranging from 9,066 to 9,415 confirmed cases and 4,381 to 4,536 deaths, possible spread to North Ubangi as an eighth DRC province, and Kenya totals rising from 3 to 8 confirmed cases, but those figures are unverified here. WHO said transmission in DRC remained intense but uneven, and reported that Kenya and Uganda had started response measures including contact tracing after the imported Kenyan case.

Who is affected and how it spreads

Ebola can affect anyone exposed to infected blood or other body fluids, including household contacts, caregivers, healthcare workers, and people handling the body of someone who has died with the disease. It spreads through direct contact with the blood or other body fluids of a sick or dead person, through contaminated objects or surfaces, and from infected animals. People do not spread Ebola before symptoms begin. WHO says the incubation period is 2 to 21 days, and its fact sheet says no approved vaccine is listed for Bundibugyo virus disease.

What officials advise

What we are watching

Updates

Sources