By DPA | Posted by TOE

Uganda discharged its last Ebola patient – a citizen of the Democratic Republic of Congo who has fully recovered – the Ugandan Health Ministry said on Thursday on X.

It said the Congolese patient can now return home. The discharge triggered a 42-day period required under international guidelines after which Uganda can declare the Ebola outbreak over, provided no new cases occur.

Still, the health ministry urged the public to remain alert for possible Ebola symptoms such as fever, vomiting, diarrhoea or unexplained bleeding.

Situation in the Congo

While Uganda is hoping for an end to the outbreak, the virus continues to spread in neighbouring Congo. Since mid-May, more than 2,000 people there have been confirmed to have contracted Ebola.

The Congolese Information Ministry said the number of confirmed cases currently stands at 2,073, including 796 deaths. At present, 737 patients are being treated in hospitals and isolation centres.

Ebola fever is a life-threatening disease. The virus is transmitted through bodily contact and contact with bodily fluids.

The current outbreak is particularly difficult to contain, partly because there is as yet neither a specific vaccine nor a specific therapy for the Bundibugyo type of the Ebola virus. Clinical testing of two antiviral therapy approaches has been under way since early July.