Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda declared an 'emergency of international concern'

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The WHO said the outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, does not meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency, but that countries sharing land borders with the DRC are at high risk for further spread.

The UN health agency said that 80 suspected deaths, eight laboratory-confirmed cases and 246 suspected cases had been reported as of Saturday.

These were located in the DRC's Ituri province across at least three health zones, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu. The DRC health ministry had said on Friday that 80 people had died in the new outbreak in the eastern province.

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The outbreak is the 17th in the country, where Ebola was first identified in 1976, and could be much larger, given the high positivity rate of the initial samples and the increasing number of suspected cases being reported, the WHO said.

The outbreak is "extraordinary" as there are no approved Bundibugyo virus-specific therapeutics or vaccines, unlike for Ebola-Zaire strains, it said. All but one of the country's previous outbreaks were caused by the Zaire strain.

The DRC-Uganda outbreak poses a public health risk to other countries, with some cases of international spread already documented, the agency said. It advised countries to activate their national disaster and emergency management mechanisms and undertake cross-border screening and screening at main internal roads.

In Uganda's capital, Kampala, two apparently unrelated laboratory-confirmed cases, including one death, were reported on Friday and Saturday, from people travelling from the DRC, the WHO said.

A laboratory-confirmed case was also reported in the DRC capital, Kinshasa, from a person returning from Ituri, the WHO said.

Bundibugyo virus-disease contacts or cases should not travel internationally, unless as part of a medical evacuation, the WHO said.

The agency advised immediately isolating confirmed cases and monitoring contacts daily, with restricted national travel and no international travel until 21 days after exposure.

At the same time, the WHO urged countries not to close their borders or restrict travel and trade out of fear, as this could lead to people and goods making informal border crossings that are not monitored.

The DRC's dense tropical forests are a natural reservoir for the Ebola virus, which causes fever, body aches, vomiting and diarrhoea.

The often-fatal virus spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected persons, contaminated materials or persons who have died from the disease, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.