Number of Ebola cases in Congo exceeds 10,000: 4,887 people died
The virus has also been recorded in other African countries such as Uganda, Nigeria, and Kenya.
The number of people infected with the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo has reached 10,060, and 4,887 people have died. This is the fastest-spreading and deadliest Ebola epidemic in the country's history.
According to the country's Ministry of Health, nearly 80 percent of new cases are not part of known transmission chains monitored by health authorities. The disease has been recorded in 66 health zones across eight provinces.
The epidemic has also spread to neighboring countries. Uganda has introduced a 21-day quarantine for citizens returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nigeria has tightened screening at airports, and in Switzerland a woman infected with the virus in Uganda has been taken in for treatment. Nine cases of Ebola infection have been confirmed in Kenya, two of whom have died.
The epidemic is caused by the Bundibugyo virus. There is currently no approved vaccine or treatment for it. The World Health Organization has announced that the first clinical trial of a vaccine against this virus has begun.
