Share this on:Copied!

The Ugandan Ministry of Health has declared an Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) epidemic following the confirmation of a Sudan ebolavirus case in Mubende district in central Uganda.

Doctor Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, said during a news conference, “We want to notify the people that we have an epidemic of Ebola which we verified yesterday.

The patient who had the verified case, according to Doctor Atwine, had a high temperature, diarrhoea, stomach discomfort, and vomiting blood. Initially, he had been given malaria medication.

This comes after a National Rapid Response team investigation into six mysterious deaths that have happened in the district this month. Eight suspected cases are now being treated at a medical facility.

“Uganda is no stranger to effective Ebola control. Thanks to its expertise, action has been taken to quickly to detect the virus and we can bank on this knowledge to halt the spread of infections,” Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Africa’s regional director, said.

The WHO said there had been seven previous outbreaks of the Ebola Sudan strain, four in Uganda and three in Sudan.

It said Uganda last reported an outbreak of Ebola Sudan strain ten years ago in 2012 and an outbreak of the Ebola Zaire strain in 2019.

In recent outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and elsewhere, the WHO reported that ring vaccination of high-risk individuals with the Ervebo vaccine had been extremely effective in controlling the spread of Ebola. However, this vaccine had only been approved to protect against the Zaire strain.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, Regional Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) for Africa, stated, “We are collaborating closely with the national health authorities to look into the origin of this epidemic and assist the efforts to swiftly implement appropriate control measures.

Humans and other primates can contract the severe, frequently deadly disease known as Ebola. Three of its six species—Bundibugyo, Sudan, and Zaire—have historically been responsible for major epidemics. In previous epidemics, the Sudan virus’ case fatality rate ranged from 41% to 100%. Early commencement of supportive care has been found to drastically lower Ebola-related fatalities.