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Kenya Reports Third Ebola Case, Linked to DRC Outbreak

Updated 12:05 AM ET · 7:22 PM ETConfirmed

Health Desk

In Short: Kenya had not reported a single case of the contagious virus until last week, when a Kenyan man who had been living in the DRC died after returning to Nairobi.

Kenya's Health Ministry confirmed a third case of Ebola on Friday, a 65-year-old woman who is a close relative of the first two patients. The patient has been in quarantine since October 6, according to the ministry's statement.

The latest case is linked to the ongoing Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is the second-largest on record globally with more than 9,000 cases and over 4,300 deaths since it was officially detected in May.

The woman, who was diagnosed early, is currently receiving supportive care, improving her chances of recovery. She developed fever, sore throat, and malaise, leading to isolation and specimen collection for testing, which confirmed the Ebola diagnosis.

Kenya had not reported a single case of the contagious virus until last week, when a Kenyan man who had been living in the DRC died after returning to Nairobi. The man's death was confirmed as the country's first case and death from the disease.

The second case was a 39-year-old relative of the first victim, who was already in quarantine and being monitored when the virus was detected. Both cases are linked to the same patient who had been ill in the DRC for about a month before traveling to Uganda and then flying to Nairobi.

Health officials have identified 128 people who had been in contact with the first patient, with 108 in quarantine, five having left Kenya, and 15 not yet tracked down. Quarantined contacts receive daily clinical and temperature checks for 21 days from their last possible exposure.

The DRC's outbreak has been complicated by the lack of a licensed vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the epidemic is 'far from over' and on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, which killed more than 11,000 people.

The DRC's most affected province is Ituri, where 6,734 cases, including 3,177 deaths, have been reported. The WHO noted that contact follow-up is 'a major operational pressure' and has fallen below targets in recent weeks.

What this adds

What's confirmed

• The latest confirmed case – a 65-year-old woman – was a “primary contact and a close relative of the first and second cases”, Kenya’s Health Ministry said in a statement on Friday, adding that the patient has been in quarantine since October 6.
• “She was diagnosed early and is currently receiving ⁠⁠supportive care improving her ⁠⁠chances of recovery.” Kenya’s cases are linked to the Ebola epidemic in the DRC, which is the second-largest on record globally ⁠ ⁠with more than 9,000 cases and over 4,300 deaths since it was officially detected in May.
• Kenya has recorded its third case of the Bundibugyo virus disease – a strain of Ebola that has killed thousands of people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – 10 days after reporting its first case and death in Nairobi.
• Questions remain over Ebola patient who travelled across three nations undetected The 40-year-old Kenyan man who died on 5 October was diagnosed with Ebola shortly after being admitted to hospital in the capital, Nairobi.
• A third person in Kenya has tested positive for Ebola, health ministry officials announced, according to Africa News.
• The country had not reported a single case of the contagious virus until last week, after a Kenyan man who had been living in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) died after returning to Kenya.
• Kenya has recorded its second case of Ebola, the health ministry said on Wednesday, adding there was "no evidence" of any large-scale transmission of the virus.
• Kenya has confirmed a second Ebola case in a 39-year-old man who was already in quarantine as a close family member of the country's first patient, the Ministry of Health said on October 14.
• The second patient, a 39-year-old man from the same family, remains stable, according to Kenya’s Ministry of Health.
• --> teleSUR English --> HD --> --> <!-- The Kenya’s health ministry has identified 128 cases of first patient contact, although it dismisses having detected “no contagion” on a large scale in the country.
• Uganda reported about 20 cases and two deaths earlier this year, but its health authorities declared the country free of the disease in August.
• The Ministry of Health has confirmed Kenya’s first imported case of Bundibugyo Ebola Virus Disease in a Kenyan citizen who had been living in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

What's still developing

• Dr Jean Kaseya, the director general of ‌‌the Africa CDC, told the Reuters news agency that international donors disbursed about $962m to organisations ⁠⁠implementing Ebola response activities in DRC, rather ⁠⁠than to the government.
• Another 2,269 people had recovered, placing the crude case fatality ratio at 48.2 percent.
• The patient, who had lived in the DRC for seven years, had been ill for about a month before travelling by road from the DRC to Uganda’s capital, Kampala, and then flying to ⁠⁠Nairobi on Saturday, Aden Duale, Kenya’s health secretary, told a news conference on Tuesday.
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• “While the circumstances of this reported case remain unconfirmed, plague is a serious bacterial disease that is treatable with antibiotics, particularly when recognized and treated early,” the CDC said.
• Arrangements for a safe and dignified burial are underway in line with Ebola burial protocols.
• The new case in Kenya was reported as Africa’s ‌‌top public health body and Congolese health authorities called ⁠⁠for greater transparency in how Ebola response funds are used.
• But he said it was too early to speak of embezzlement.
• CARE Kenya Country Director Getrude Misango is calling on governments to act quickly and work together to contain the outbreak.
• The Kenyan government says four new patients have tested positive for the Ebola Bundibugyo virus, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the East African nation to seven.
• The incubation period for Ebola ranges from two to 21 days, meaning those exposed to the virus may not become ill for several weeks.
• Of these, 108 were in quarantine in Kenya and tracing of the remaining 15 continued, it said.

Sources

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• Channels Televisionlink
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• GBC Ghana Onlinelink
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• Medical Dailylink
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