Unknown disease that kills in 48 hours leaves 53 dead in Congo

 According to the World Health Organization, the outbreak appears to have originated in a village where three children died after eating a bat.

A disease still unknown to experts has already killed 53 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa . According to the World Health Organization (WHO) , most deaths from the disease occur just 48 hours after the onset of symptoms. The WHO describes the outbreak as “a significant threat to public health”.According to the WHO Africa office, at least 431 cases of individuals suffering from fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle aches, headaches and fatigue have been reported since January.

The unknown disease appears to have emerged in two villages in Équateur province and has a mortality rate of 12.3%, according to the WHO.

Investigators have identified the origin of the outbreak as being in Boloko Village, where three children under the age of 5 died after allegedly eating a bat carcass.

In addition to other symptoms understood as standard for this disease, the three children had symptoms similar to those of a hemorrhagic fever, with nosebleeds and vomiting of blood, before they died between January 10 and 13.

After the initial three deaths, four more children from the same village, aged between 5 and 18, died. As of January 27, 10 cases and seven deaths had been reported in Boloko Village and two cases and one death in Danda Village. Just over a week later, a second outbreak of the mysterious disease was reported to health authorities in Bomate Village.

Tests

In February, WHO investigators identified 419 cases of the virus there, with 45 deaths. They sent samples from a total of 18 cases to the National Institute for Biomedical Research in Congo's capital, Kinshasa, for testing, but all samples tested negative for common hemorrhagic fever diseases such as Ebola and Marburg.

“Further laboratory testing is essential to identify the causative pathogen,” the WHO report said.

According to health authorities, the remote location of the two outbreaks, combined with the country's "weak healthcare infrastructure, increases the risk of further spread, requiring immediate high-level intervention to contain the outbreak."