United States: The concerning deaths of more than hundreds of individuals from a mysterious flu-like illness in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s southwest, with women and children especially vulnerable, health officials said Thursday.
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Since October 24, at least 376 people have been affected with fever, headaches, runny noses, breathing difficulties, and anemia, said Jean Kaseya, the director general of Africa’s CDC, during the agency’s weekly briefing.
This new disease has been dubbed ‘Disease X’ by Health officials; African CDC reports have estimated 79 people have been killed by the illness to date, while local officials told Reuters the rate was higher at 143.
Case definition unclear
The numbers differ because the case definition is still unclear, and some cases are still being confirmed, Margaret Muigai Edwin, communications director for Africa CDC, as the Washington Post reported.
The disease comes up in the Panzi health zone, according to Kaseya, who is a Kwango province man in the rural area bordering Angola.
The above analysis shows that children below 5 years account for the highest number of cases, which is more than half of the total cases.
For instance, a disease like malnutrition, which affects about 40 percent of the region’s population, might have caused vulnerable infected individuals to succumb to the disease, said Dieudonné Mwamba, director general of Congo’s National Public Health Institute, at the briefing.
Communication issues might also have played a part in the spread, according to Kaseya. Unscheduled downtime may also have been caused, explained Kaseya. The first case was confirmed on October 24, but the authorities only informed the national government on Sunday.
Furthermore, “That means we had a delay of almost five to six weeks,” Kaseya mentioned, the Washington Post reported.
“In five to six weeks, so many things can happen,” he added.
A team of epidemiologists, lab experts, and infection prevention and control workers from Africa CDC are now in the Kwango province attempting to confirm the disease, as Kaseya mentioned.