Uganda declared an end to its latest Ebola outbreak on Saturday, three months after confirming cases of the highly infectious and often fatal viral haemorrhagic disease in the capital, Kampala.
The East African country first announced the outbreak on January 30, following the death of a male nurse who tested positive for the virus.
“Good news! The current Ebola Sudan Virus Disease outbreak has officially come to an end,” Uganda’s Ministry of Health said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
The ministry stated that the declaration was made after 42 consecutive days without a new case, following the discharge of the last confirmed patient. Although an updated total number of cases was not provided, the ministry had reported at least 10 infections and two deaths by early March.
Ebola outbreaks are common in Uganda, where tropical forests act as natural reservoirs for the virus. This recent outbreak, caused by the Sudan strain, which currently has no approved vaccine, was Uganda’s ninth since the first recorded case in 2000.
Uganda shares borders with the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has experienced over a dozen Ebola outbreaks, including a major one from 2018 to 2020 that claimed nearly 2,300 lives.
The outbreak began in Kampala, a densely populated city of approximately four million people and a key transport hub linking eastern Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, and South Sudan.
Despite recurring outbreaks, health experts note that Uganda’s experience and rapid response capabilities have helped it manage and contain outbreaks more efficiently over time.
Ebola is transmitted through contact with infected bodily fluids and tissues, with symptoms typically including fever, muscle pain, vomiting blood, and bleeding.
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