Médecins Sans Frontières warned that the rapidly expanding epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo is outpacing containment efforts, making it the third-largest and fastest-growing Ebola outbreak on record.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The Ebola outbreak spreading through the Democratic Republic of Congo has nearly reached 2,000 confirmed cases and is continuing to accelerate despite efforts to contain it, according to Médecins Sans Frontières.
The international medical charity, commonly known as MSF, warned Wednesday that the epidemic is moving faster and proving more virulent than the response mounted against it.
Confirmed cases tripled in fewer than five weeks, reaching 1,926 as of Sunday, according to official figures cited in a Reuters report. The outbreak had caused 702 deaths by that point, and the number of infections was expected to have already surpassed 2,000 as cases continued rising.
MSF described the epidemic as the third-largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded and the fastest-growing.
“Every delay costs lives. We are still chasing the outbreak instead of staying ahead of it,” said Trish Newport, MSF’s emergency program manager.
Newport called for a larger and more coordinated international effort to expand treatment capacity and improve care for people infected with the virus.
The outbreak affecting the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring Uganda was declared a global health emergency in May.
The World Health Organization has warned that the epidemic is likely much larger than official figures indicate.
Health officials have identified population movement and delays in obtaining treatment as factors contributing to the spread.
Those conditions can make containment more difficult because Ebola is transmitted through direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person. Delayed diagnosis and treatment can allow patients to expose family members, caregivers and health workers before isolation measures are implemented.
The rapid increase in confirmed infections suggests response teams remain behind the disease’s spread rather than preventing new transmission chains, according to MSF’s warning.
The current outbreak is approaching the scale of some of Africa’s deadliest previous Ebola epidemics.
Approximately 15,000 people have died from Ebola in African countries during the past 50 years.
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s deadliest outbreak occurred between 2018 and 2020, killing nearly 2,300 people.
The latest epidemic has already produced more than 700 confirmed deaths and continues to expand through the country and surrounding region.
Governments outside Africa are beginning to impose travel restrictions intended to reduce the possibility of Ebola crossing international borders.
The United States announced Monday that American citizens in the Democratic Republic of Congo would not be permitted to return directly on commercial flights.
Under the announced rules, those citizens would be required to spend at least 21 days in a third country before traveling to the United States.
The 21-day period reflects the maximum commonly recognized incubation window during which symptoms may develop following exposure to Ebola.
Non-U.S. citizens who recently traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan would be barred from entering the United States entirely, according to Reuters, which cited a White House official.
The restrictions reflect growing international concern that the outbreak could spread through regional and global travel networks.
The affected countries face particular challenges because people frequently cross borders for work, trade, medical treatment and family reasons. Such movement can make it difficult for health authorities to identify every contact of an infected patient and monitor those individuals throughout the incubation period.
Delays in treatment also increase the danger to patients and communities.
People infected with Ebola have a better chance of survival when they receive prompt supportive care, including fluids, treatment for complications and close medical monitoring. Late arrival at treatment centers can worsen outcomes and increase the number of people exposed before a diagnosis is made.
MSF’s warning indicates that current resources and coordination have not been sufficient to keep pace with the outbreak.
The charity is urging international governments, health organizations and regional authorities to expand care, improve coordination and move more quickly to identify and isolate new cases.
With the confirmed count rising from fewer than 650 cases to 1,926 in less than five weeks, the epidemic’s trajectory has raised fears that it could surpass previous outbreaks unless the response is rapidly strengthened.
The official count may also understate the full number of infections because some patients may die or recover without reaching a treatment facility or being tested.
As the death toll rises and travel controls expand, health officials are confronting an outbreak that has already become one of the most severe in Ebola’s recorded history.
MSF’s central warning is that the response must move from reacting to new clusters after they appear to preventing transmission before additional communities are affected.
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