Uganda’s Ministry of Health has confirmed two additional cases of Ebola Virus Disease, bringing the nation’s total confirmed infections to seven. The new cases include a driver who transported the initial patient and has since died, a healthcare worker, and a Congolese woman who briefly received treatment in Kampala before returning to the DRC.
The Ministry of Health in Uganda has announced the confirmation of three new Ebola Virus Disease cases, escalating the total number of confirmed infections in the country to five. Among the newly identified cases is a Ugandan driver who initially transported the nation’s first confirmed Ebola patient and later succumbed to the illness.
A healthcare worker involved in the care of the initial patient has also tested positive. The third new case involves a woman from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who entered Uganda via the Arua border crossing.
According to official statements, the Congolese woman traveled from Arua to Entebbe by chartered flight and sought medical attention at a private hospital in Kampala. She was reportedly discharged before Ugandan authorities could confirm her positive status, and she subsequently returned to the DRC. Samples taken by Ugandan health officials later confirmed her infection.
These developments occur as Uganda has questioned the World Health Organization’s decision to include it in the current outbreak response alongside the DRC, given the lower number of confirmed cases in Uganda. The Ministry of Health has also implemented travel restrictions to the DRC.
Separately, the United States has updated its travel advisories, recommending that its citizens “Do Not Travel” to the DRC, South Sudan, and Uganda, while advising reconsideration for travel to Rwanda due to the regional Ebola Bundibugyo Virus Disease outbreak.
The current outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain, a variant for which no specific vaccines or therapeutics are currently approved. Treatment primarily consists of supportive care, and the fatality rate for this strain is estimated to be around 40%. This marks the second time both Uganda and the DRC have experienced an outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain, following previous outbreaks involving the Zaire strain.
