The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) has resulted in 2,061 deaths and may become the largest recorded Ebola outbreak globally.
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference on the 12th that this is already the second largest recorded Ebola outbreak, and at its current pace, it could exceed the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak in scale.
The country has so far reported a total of 4,449 confirmed Ebola cases, of which 2,061 have resulted in death. Epidemic prevention and control efforts have been in a passive, catch-up mode.
The 2014 to 2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak was the largest since the discovery of the Ebola virus in 1976, with more than 28,000 reported cases and around 11,000 deaths.
Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a hemorrhagic infectious disease caused by the Ebola virus. It is mainly transmitted by contact with the blood, bodily fluids, or excrement of infected patients or animals. Clinical manifestations primarily include fever, bleeding, and multiple organ damage, with a fatality rate between 50% and 90%. The Ebola virus is named after the Ebola River in northern DR Congo, where it was first discovered in 1976.