The CDC said it is assisting with contact tracing and risk assessments after a U.S. citizen working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo contracted the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
WASHINGTON — A U.S. citizen working for a humanitarian organization in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has tested positive for a form of Ebola, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced July 10.
The agency identified the infection as Bundibugyo virus, one of the viruses capable of causing Ebola disease, but released few details about the patient or the circumstances surrounding the diagnosis.
“CDC is aware of a U.S. citizen working for a humanitarian organization in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) who has tested positive for Bundibugyo virus, a type of Ebola,” the agency said in a brief statement.
The CDC said it is coordinating with the organization employing the patient, other federal agencies, Congolese public health officials and additional partners to limit the possibility of further transmission.
“CDC is working with the patient’s employing organization, other U.S. federal agencies, public health authorities, and partners in DRC to help prevent further transmission by supporting contact tracing and performing risk assessments to identify high-risk contacts,” the agency said.
Authorities have not disclosed the patient’s condition, identity or the name of the humanitarian group for which the person works. It also remains unclear whether the patient will stay in Congo for treatment or be transferred to another country.
The CDC and State Department did not immediately provide additional information in response to inquiries.
The diagnosis comes amid a major Ebola outbreak in Congo that authorities believe may have begun weeks or months before it was formally detected in May.
Congolese officials said July 10 that the outbreak had reached 1,830 cases and 648 deaths. Authorities also reported this week that the virus had spread into two additional provinces.
Cases have also been confirmed in neighboring Uganda, which shares a border with Congo. Ugandan authorities have recorded 20 confirmed infections and two confirmed deaths.
The first known case from the outbreak detected outside Africa was reported in France in June. French authorities said the patient was a humanitarian doctor working for the Alliance for International Medical Action.
The doctor was placed in isolation after testing positive.
Another American physician, Dr. Peter Stafford, contracted the virus earlier in the outbreak while working for the Christian nonprofit Serge.
Stafford developed symptoms and was flown to Germany for treatment. He has since recovered.
Members of Stafford’s family and another Serge doctor were also exposed and transported to Europe for monitoring. None of them tested positive.
U.S. officials had previously planned to establish a quarantine center in Kenya for Americans exposed to Ebola during the outbreak. That proposal was abandoned after a Kenyan court ordered authorities to halt construction.
The United States maintains several isolation and quarantine facilities intended for infectious disease emergencies.
Two of those facilities were used this year for people evacuated from a cruise ship affected by a hantavirus outbreak.
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, the CDC’s acting director, said in June that American citizens who contract Ebola abroad could be brought back to the United States if their medical needs warrant such a transfer.
“We’re not ruling out moving people out to the United States if we believe that case requires more intensive management,” Bhattacharya said.
Federal officials have not said whether the newly diagnosed American patient is being considered for evacuation.
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