Ebola outbreak in DRC may mutate as health workers expand house‑to‑house response

The Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo, driven by the Bundibugyo strain, has surpassed 4,000 confirmed cases, making it the second‑largest outbreak in the disease’s history. Africa CDC chief Jean Kaseya warned that the virus could be mutating and announced joint studies with the World Health Organization to investigate the cause of the unusually severe spread.

Health authorities are shifting from traditional contact tracing to active house‑to‑house case finding, with doctors such as Wesam Mankoula stating, “the time for gradual steps is over, we are now entering the expansion phase.” Patients will also receive the antiviral remdesivir and be offered the Ervebo vaccine, which early data suggest reduces disease severity and has so far prevented deaths among vaccinated individuals. More than two‑thirds of fatalities occur outside treatment centers, and many patients admitted to Médecins Sans Frontières in Bunia were not on known contact lists. The outbreak has spread from Ituri to North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut‑Uélé and Tshopo, and has crossed into neighboring Uganda, while authorities probe suspicious deaths on a boat bound for Kinshasa.