The World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern May 17 over an Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.
Five things to know:
1. As of May 17, there have been 10 confirmed cases, 336 suspected cases and 88 deaths in the Congo, according to the CDC. Uganda has also identified two confirmed cases — one of which was fatal — among individuals who traveled from the Congo, marking documented international spread. The WHO noted significant uncertainty around the true scope of the outbreak, including the geographic spread of cases and the epidemiological links between known and suspected patients.
2. Unlike Ebola strains circulating during past large outbreaks, there are currently no approved therapeutics or vaccines specific to the Bundibugyo virus, the WHO said. The agency cited ongoing insecurity, high population mobility and a large network of informal healthcare facilities in the region as factors complicating response efforts.
3. CDC officials in the Congo and Uganda are coordinating with U.S. government partners, local ministries of health and international organizations on surveillance, laboratory diagnostics, infection prevention and outbreak containment. The agency is also coordinating the withdrawal of a small number of Americans directly affected by the outbreak.
4. The risk to the American public remains low, the CDC said. Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person and does not spread through casual contact or air.
5. The U.S. has a handful of specialized biocontainment facilities capable of treating highly infectious diseases, including units at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha and Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. Both are currently monitoring patients amid the hantavirus outbreak.
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