The World Health Organisation, WHO, on Friday announced the first confirmed recovery of an Ebola patient in the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC.
WHO official Anais Legand disclosed that the recovered patient was discharged from hospital on May 27 after testing negative twice for the virus.
According to her, the patient is the first confirmed Ebola case to recover and return to the community since the outbreak was declared on May 15.
“This is the first one to be discharged from a care centre following two negative tests,” Legand told reporters.
She, however, noted that there were likely other recoveries among suspected cases that had not yet received laboratory confirmation.
The WHO said it has so far recorded 17 confirmed Ebola deaths and 223 suspected deaths in the DRC outbreak, with 125 confirmed cases and more than 900 suspected cases.
Health officials stated that the outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
The strain is known to have a fatality rate of up to 50 percent, although current figures from the outbreak suggest a death rate below 25 percent.
Legand stressed that early medical care significantly improves survival chances and expressed optimism that more patients would recover.
“We are expecting more people to recover,” she said.
AFP
