Geneva: The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that 80% of new Ebola cases in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are linked to unknown chains of transmission, indicating that the outbreak is spreading faster than health officials can trace.
The WHO said the high proportion of unlinked infections highlights significant challenges in identifying contacts and containing the disease despite an expanding public health response.
According to the latest government figures, the number of confirmed Ebola cases has risen to 2,011, including 754 deaths.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s National Institute of Public Health reported 54 new confirmed cases on Monday across Ituri, North Kivu and Haut-Uele provinces.
The current outbreak, which began in May, is caused by a rare strain of the Ebola virus for which there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has described it as Africa’s fastest-growing Ebola outbreak.
Health authorities continue to strengthen surveillance, isolation and contact-tracing efforts as they work to contain the rapidly expanding outbreak.
