Ebola death toll tops 5,300 as DRC outbreak expands

The death toll from the current Ebola outbreak in Africa exceeded 5,300, according to data released by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo serves as the epicenter of the epidemic, having declared its 17th and largest outbreak in mid-May. The Africa CDC reported that 5,372 of the 5,376 total deaths occurred in the DRC. Two additional deaths were recorded in Kenya and two in Uganda. The Bundibugyo strain, responsible for the current wave, has infected 10,444 people across the DRC, Uganda, and Kenya. The mortality rate for this strain stands at more than 50 percent.

The virus has crossed national borders multiple times in recent months. Uganda recorded 20 cases, nearly all involving travelers from the DRC, before being declared Ebola-free in August. Kenya reported two deaths and nine infections in October, marking the first recorded cases of the virus in that country. In Nigeria, health authorities confirmed that two suspected cases in the northeast region tested negative after two rounds of testing. Abuja reported its first imported case in October, the first occurrence in over a decade, with no recorded deaths. France reported a single case in July involving a health worker returning from the DRC.

No approved treatments or vaccines currently exist for the Bundibugyo strain. Clinical trials for the Ervebo vaccine have begun in recent weeks. This vaccine has previously proven effective against the more common Zaire strain.

The next phase of the response involves the ongoing clinical trials for the Ervebo vaccine, which is being tested against the rarer Bundibugyo strain.