DR Congo Ebola cases exceed 4,000 in current outbreak

Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Confirmed Ebola cases in the current outbreak have risen above 4,000 for the first time, according to government data.

The country’s public health institute reported 4,053 infections, including 1,850 deaths.

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Outbreak spread

The epidemic is the world’s second-largest Ebola outbreak and has been described as the fastest-spreading on record.

Cases have been recorded in five provinces: Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele and Tshopo.

Earlier circulation

Experts believe infections were circulating months before the outbreak was declared on May 15 and that the true number of cases may be higher than the official tally.

A report published in the journal Science last month concluded that the outbreak began in January, or earlier, in Ituri. Researchers identified more than 500 suspected cases between mid-January and May 15.

Containment challenges

Delayed detection, overwhelmed surveillance, military conflict, and a lack of vaccines and treatments for the virus species involved have hampered containment efforts.

Only the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa was larger, with more than 28,000 cases recorded in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.