The latest data from government sources in the Democratic Republic of Congo revealed that the Ebola outbreak has resulted in the death of 2,325 individuals, surpassing the toll from the previous 2018-2020 outbreak to become the deadliest in the nation’s history. The country’s public health institute reported a total of 4,945 confirmed cases, with 101 new cases identified in the last 24 hours. This outbreak, the 17th in the country, has already set a record for the highest number of cases recorded in its history, which was achieved in late July.
The most recent government statistics indicate that the death toll has exceeded the 2,299 fatalities recorded during the Congo’s 2018-2020 outbreak, previously the worst on record in the country. As of now, there are 4,945 confirmed cases of Ebola. Three months after its official declaration, this outbreak is second in scale only to West Africa’s 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak, which saw 28,616 cases and 11,310 deaths in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organization. It took nearly five months for the 2014-2016 outbreak to reach 1,000 deaths, while the current outbreak in Congo reached 2,000 deaths in less than three months.
The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments. Since its declaration on May 15, the outbreak has intensified due to challenges such as weak healthcare infrastructure, community resistance, and instability, hindering the identification and response to cases. The case fatality ratio, indicating the percentage of individuals who die after confirmed infection, has risen from about 20% in early June to 46%, signifying that almost half of the confirmed cases are now fatal.
Health experts emphasize that the increased fatality ratio does not suggest the virus has become more lethal but rather highlights persistent issues in surveillance, case detection, and access to care. Efforts are ongoing to evaluate a few experimental vaccines and therapies, while global health authorities explore the potential of existing Ebola treatments for protection, although current evidence is predominantly based on animal studies.
The outbreak had previously spread to neighboring Uganda, where authorities successfully limited deaths to two and confirmed cases to 20 before declaring an end to the outbreak last month. Ebola is transmitted through direct contact with infected individuals’ bodily fluids, both living and deceased, and can lead to symptoms such as fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and, in severe cases, internal and external bleeding.