Uganda confirms 2 new Ebola cases, total rises to 9

Two new cases of Ebola have been confirmed in the outbreak affecting Uganda, bringing the total to nine, according to the country’s health ministry.

The new cases were confirmed by Uganda’s Ministry of Health in a statement on Monday, according to Reuters. Of the nine total cases, one death has been confirmed, while the remaining eight patients are in stable condition and receiving treatment in hospitals.

The majority of hospitalized patients are being treated in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, while one case is receiving care in the city of Mbale, near the Kenyan border. A total of 265 contacts have been identified and placed under quarantine.

The first confirmed case in the outbreak was a 32-year-old male nurse employed at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala. He initially developed fever-like symptoms on January 19 and sought treatment at multiple health facilities, including from a traditional healer, while symptomatic.

His condition worsened, progressing to bleeding from multiple body sites, according to Uganda’s Ministry of Health. He suffered multi-organ failure and died at Mulago Hospital on January 29.

The second confirmed case in the outbreak was the wife of the index patient, who tested positive for Sudan Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) after developing symptoms consistent with the disease.

Sudan Ebolavirus disease is a severe, often fatal illness that affects humans and other primates. It is caused by Orthoebolavirus sudanense (Sudan virus), a viral species belonging to the same genus as the virus responsible for Ebola virus disease. Case fatality rates for Sudan virus disease have ranged from 41% to 100% in past outbreaks.

There have been eight previous outbreaks of the Sudan Ebola virus, with five occurring in Uganda and three in Sudan, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Uganda’s last Ebola outbreak was in 2022.

The 2022 outbreak resulted in 77 deaths out of 164 cases across nine districts. In Kampala, 19 cases were reported, including three deaths, according to a post-evaluation study published in The Lancet.