WHO says Ebola outbreak has become more complex in three African countries — Al Jazeera

The World Health Organization has said that the Ebola outbreak, which began in the Democratic Republic of Congo, is becoming more complex as cases are now present in countries in East and West Africa. Nigeria this week confirmed its first case of infection with the Bundibugyo strain. Al Jazeera reports.

WHO Regional Director for Africa Mohamed Janabi said that the outbreak situation had become more complex. Nigeria became the fourth African country affected by the outbreak declared in the DRC in mid-May. Kenya, the DRC and Nigeria recorded active or recent cases of the Bundibugyo strain. Uganda had cases earlier this year, but the country was declared Ebola-free in August.

The origin of the infection is being investigated

Health workers are establishing the source of infection of the first patient in Nigeria, a Ugandan-born woman and the wife of a Swiss diplomat working in Abuja. Ugandan authorities said that the woman had travelled through the eastern part of the DRC before transiting through Uganda. At the same time, the WHO and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention have not received confirmed information about her trip to the DRC.

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The Swiss government told Reuters that the patient was likely infected while staying in Uganda. Ugandan authorities rejected this link. WHO representative in Nigeria Pavel Ursu said that the information provided to the organization contained no data about the woman's travel outside Uganda.

A possible contact at the airport is being checked

Africa CDC head of emergency preparedness and response Wessam Mankoula said that the first patient in Nigeria and the first patient in Kenya left Entebbe on October 3. A possible contact between them at the airport is being checked. Investigators are also determining which medical facilities in Abuja the patient visited between the onset of symptoms and her hospitalization 48 hours later.

In Kenya, eight more cases were confirmed after the first one, and health authorities traced all 135 contacts of the first patient. In Nigeria, 44 contacts are being traced, although others were later identified. In the DRC, more than 4,000 people have died since May out of more than 9,000 confirmed cases. Africa CDC warned of an extremely serious threat: the case fatality rate in the DRC is approaching 50%.