Illustrative photo.
The Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health (MoH) has revealed that it will monitor and closely follow developments relating to an unknown disease which has emerged in Congo that has so far recorded 406 cases, including 31 deaths.
The MoH also shared that it will proactively conduct event-based surveillance with information about the disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as co-ordinating efforts with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other countries to update and share information about the mystery flu-like disease.
It will work alongside the WHO and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States as well as other relevant units, in order to both assess the risks and propose appropriate responses, including strengthening medical quarantine work.
According to details shared with foreign media, at present the mystery disease in Congo is occurring in a rural area, in a remote province that is located far from the capital Kinshasa, a total of 48 hours by road.
The area has experienced food shortages over recent months, poor medical conditions, low vaccination rates, and limited access to diagnosis and case management.
WHO said that symptoms of the illness include fever, headache, cough, and anemia.
On December 10, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, added that the majority of the samples had tested positive for malaria, but noted that it is possible that more than one disease was involved. He said that further samples will subsequently be collected and tested.
