WHO Declares Ebola Emergency in 2 African Nations as India Reports 0 Cases
Updated
Updated · Mashable India · Jun 3
WHO Declares Ebola Emergency in 2 African Nations as India Reports 0 Cases
1 articles · Updated · Mashable India · Jun 3
Summary
May 17 brought WHO’s declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern over Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, a move that intensified alarm in India after a Ugandan traveler was quarantined in Bengaluru.
0 Ebola cases have been reported in India so far, according to infectious-disease specialist Mohammad Shakeel Salat, who said the Bengaluru patient later tested negative.
40% is the current outbreak’s reported fatality rate, Salat said, versus Ebola outbreaks that can approach 90%; transmission is mainly through direct contact with infected body fluids rather than the respiratory route.
Two Ebola vaccine regimens exist, but Salat said neither is approved for the current Bundibugyo virus outbreak, leaving infection control, PPE use and monitoring of exposed people as the main defenses.
Large Covid-style spread remains unlikely, he said, because Ebola outbreaks are usually localized, though infected travelers can still seed cases abroad and fuel public panic.