France Reports First Ebola Case
France has confirmed its first case of Ebola, detected in a doctor who recently returned from a humanitarian mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The French health ministry announced the case on Wednesday, stating the patient was immediately admitted to a specialised facility and is in stable condition, according to the BBC.
The DR Congo declared an Ebola outbreak last month, though experts believe the virus had been circulating for weeks prior. The current outbreak has resulted in more than 260 deaths and over 1,000 infections in the central African country.
Rare Bundibugyo Virus Strain
Health experts have identified the outbreak as being caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is currently no vaccine or treatment available. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has noted that this is the largest outbreak of this strain ever recorded. In May, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
Ebola Symptoms and Transmission
According to the NHS, Ebola virus disease is a serious, rare infection typically found in certain parts of Africa. It is caught through contact with body fluids of an infected person or wild animal. Symptoms can appear suddenly between 2 and 21 days after infection and include flu-like symptoms such as high temperature, extreme tiredness, and headache.
Other symptoms include vomiting, diarrhoea and tummy pain, skin rash, yellowing of the skin and eyes, blood in stool, bruising, bleeding from ears, eyes, nose or mouth, muscle pain, sore throat, and blood in vomit or from gums or vagina.
Risk in Europe
The NHS emphasises that Ebola has never been spread from person to person in the UK. The current case in France is isolated, and health authorities are monitoring the situation closely.
