A milestone nobody wanted
More than 10,000 people have been infected in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Ebola outbreak since it was declared in May, according to the latest government figures. The outbreak is the fastest-growing on record. As of 19 October, Congo had reported 9,277 confirmed cases and 4,478 deaths across 64 of the country's 167 health zones, in eight provinces including Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu and Tshopo. The 10,000 mark was passed in the days that followed.
No licensed vaccine for this virus
The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, one of several ebolaviruses. There is no approved vaccine or treatment for it, so the vaccines and antibody drugs that helped contain earlier outbreaks of the Zaire strain do not transfer directly. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Response teams are relying on contact tracing, isolation units and safe burials. An October survey by the International Rescue Committee found that 85 percent of respondents in North Kivu, a current hotspot, said distrust of community responders was keeping them from seeking care.
Spread beyond Congo's borders
Cases have been imported to Kenya and Nigeria. Nigeria reported a case on 20 October in a person with travel history to Uganda who developed symptoms on 7 October, sought care on 11 October and tested positive on 20 October. Forty-four contacts are being followed. Uganda's own outbreak ended on 2 September, and a handful of imported cases in Europe have been treated without further spread.
Aid groups say fewer American and international health workers are deploying this time, partly because US policy may not allow them back if they fall ill, leaving more of the burden on Congolese and regional staff. Malaria, cholera and measles are spreading in the same areas, and malnutrition among children is worsening, which makes tracing and treatment harder in exactly the places the virus is moving fastest.