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Three vaccination teams are deployed in the field and will work to reach all people at high risk. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) started this Wednesday, April 27, 2022 vaccination once morest the Ebola virus disease in the city of Mbandaka, capital of the province of Equateur, in the northwest of the country. The initiative aims to stop the spread of the virus following the outbreak which has claimed two lives since April 21. In a press release, the Africa Office of the World Health Organization (WHO) informs that approximately 200 doses of the rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine once morest Ebola have been sent to Mbandaka from the eastern city of Goma. Other doses will be delivered gradually over the next few days. Vaccination uses the “ring strategy” where everyone who has come into contact with a confirmed Ebola patient receives the vaccine along with front-line workers. So far, 233 contacts have been identified and are under surveillance. Three vaccination teams are already on the ground and will work to reach everyone at high risk. Only two cases, both deceased, have been confirmed since the outbreak began. The disease is currently reported only in the health district of Mbandaka. “With effective vaccines at our fingertips and the experience of health workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the response to Ebola, we can change the course of this epidemic for the better now,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti. , WHO Regional Director for Africa. She added, “We are supporting the country in all key aspects of the Ebola emergency response to protect and save lives.” Congolese health authorities are stepping up the response in addition to vaccination. A 20-bed Ebola treatment center has been set up in Mbandaka. Disease surveillance and investigation of suspected cases are ongoing to detect any new infections, with the support of WHO providing material support and providing six epidemiologists to assist in the response. For its part, the country’s National Institute of Biomedical Research (INRB) carried out an analysis of a sample of the first confirmed case, the results of which show that the current epidemic is a parallel incident of the host virus or animal reservoir. . Investigations are underway to determine the source of the new outbreak and how it may have infected the first confirmed case. The Democratic Republic of Congo is experiencing its 14th Ebola outbreak since 1976, including six since 2018 alone.

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