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EBOLA HEMORRHAGIC FEVER - CONGO DR (09)

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It is being reported that 7 more cases of Ebola virus infection have 

been confirmed in people living in the Congo. According to WHO and 

government officials, these latest cases of the virus bring the total 

cases to be reported in the area to 24. "The total number of 

confirmed positive Ebola cases are at 24 out of a total of 53 

patients tested," said the DRC health ministry, adding that 6 of 

these have already died.



According to a statement released by the ministry, "The 7 confirmed 

cases all come from the Kampungu area," the epicentre of the deadly 

hemorrhagic fever located 150 km (93 miles) northwest of Kananga, the 

provincial capital. "We're still in the middle of an epidemic," said 

Benoit Kebela, head of the government's inter-ministry group tackling 

the outbreak. "In order to declare it under control, you have to wait 

twice the incubation period, or 42 days after the last death," he said.



Ebola, which is fatal in between 50 and 90 percent of cases, is 

transmitted by contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other 

bodily fluids of infected persons. Symptoms exhibited by a person who 

is infected with the Ebola virus include fever, muscle pain, 

vomiting, diarrhea and, in some cases, bleeding from orifices.



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[Since the previous report from the Kasat Occidental province of the 

Democratic Republic of the Congo, the number of confirmed cases has 

risen from 17 to 24, with the number of fatalities remaining at 6. It 

is unclear how recently the 53 patients tested were potentially 

exposed to infection. Further information is awaited. - Mod.CP]



Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR (08) 20070926.3191

Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR (07 20070923.3156

Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR (06) 20070921.3138

Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR (04) 20070916.3076

Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR (02) 20070912.3026

Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR 20070910.2996

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