KINSHASA, ZAIRE - Two cases of possible Ebola infection
have been reported in the capital of Zaire,a city of five million people.
The patients are being kept in isolation according to wire service reports.
In a separate development, a Swiss woman who had been visiting Zaire is
now quarantined in a Swiss hospital with possible Ebola infection.
With the number of confirmed deaths from Ebola infection in the Kikwit
area now topping one hundred, health authorities are uncertain when the
outbreak will be contained.
The most recent report from the WHO puts the death toll at 101 and the
number of infections at 137 since the first Ebola victim died March 27.
Four patients appear to be in the process of recovering from the disease
and another has recovered and gone home, according to the WHO.
The increase in reported cases partly reflects the work of WHO epidemiologists
who have been searching the surrounding towns and villages for additional
cases. The most recent reports indicate that the virus has spread to villages
surrounding Kikwit including Kenge, about 100 miles from Kinshasa, the capital
of Zaire.
"We know of six villages or towns which are outside of Kikwit to
which patients from Kikwit have gone, and often stayed with relatives. We
are now beginning to see (sickness) spread from those patients to other
household members. And that is very concerning to us," said WHO assistant
director-general Ralph Henderson in a conference call with reporters.
An army enforced quarantine of Kikwit has now been lifted after it became
apparent it would not stop the virus from getting out, but would stop food
and other supplies from getting in. A number of foreign journalists were
placed under quarantine by police in Kinshasa after returning from Kikwit,
the center of the outbreak.
WHO officials are confident the epidemic will be contained, they are
just not certain when this will happen. Their confidence comes from the
evidence indicating that the Ebola virus infection can only be spread by
intimate contact with patients or dead bodies of victims. A publicity campaign
has been launched to warn everyone in the area not to touch dead bodies
or people with symptoms of the disease. Health authorities are also attempting
to institute western-style hygiene in medical centers and morgues in the
area. Most of the cases of infection have occurred in these settings. The
uncertainty as to when the epidemic will end is based on insufficient information
on the extent of the outbreak in outlying areas.
Most of the countries surrounding Zaire have instituted various surveillance
measures to guard against Ebola infected patients crossing their borders.
Angolan authorities have closed the part of their border with Zaire, while
Kenya and Tanzania have instructed border guards to be on the lookout for
travelers from Zaire who may be infected with the virus.
Countries further afield, including Yemen, Egypt, Belgium, Brazil and
the Philippines are now monitoring flights from Africa. Qatar has closed
its borders completely to African flights. The U.S. State Department has
issued a strongly worded travel advisory counseling against visiting "the
affected area" at the present time.
