WHO Declares Global Health Emergency Over Ebola Outbreak in DRC and Uganda

Overview

• The World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern after about 246 suspected cases and roughly 80 deaths were reported in Ituri, with confirmed cases including one death in Kampala.
• Officials identified the cause as the rare Bundibugyo species of Ebola, which has no approved vaccines or specific treatments.
• Early rapid tests returned negative results, and laboratories needed more advanced tools to confirm Bundibugyo, which delayed detection.
• WHO judged the global threat to be low but the regional risk to be high and urged isolation of cases, daily contact monitoring, screening at borders, and no border closures.
• Control efforts face delays from weeks of undetected spread after an index nurse fell ill on April 24 and from conflict and mobile mining towns that hinder tracing and safe burials.