Jigyasa Sahay
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Mystery illness or an ‘unknown disease’ has claimed over 50 lives. What starts with a regular fever or flu like disease, accelerates into a fatal illness. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported of over 431 cases and sounded an alert on the area owing to rapidly spreading virus.
This illness has been reported in the northwestern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is buffeted by multiple public health and humanitarian crises, WHO stated. “The outbreak, which has seen cases rise rapidly within days, poses a significant public health threat,” IANS reported, noting that the disease progresses rapidly, with nearly half of the deaths occurring within 48 hours of symptom onset in the Basankusu Health Zone, and an exceptionally high case fatality rate in the Bolomba Health Zone.
The first cluster of cases and deaths were reported in January in Boloko Village, in Bolomba Health Zone. Preliminary investigations traced the outbreak’s origin to three community deaths among children under five years old, who died after developing a fever, headache, diarrhea, and fatigue, which later progressed to hemorrhage. There were reports that the children had consumed a bat carcass prior to the onset of signs and symptoms.
Symptoms of mystery disease
Serge Ngalebato, medical director of Bikoro hospital shared that what is worrisome is how the interval between onset of symptoms and death has been 48 hours in most cases. Currently, there is little information on the mystery disease.
Possibilities of malaria, viral hemorrhagic fevers, food or waterborne poisoning, typhoid fever, and meningitis are being considered, but Ebola and Marburg viruses have been ruled out, according to testing, the WHO said, Xinhua news agency reported.
In late 2024, the DRC’s southwestern province of Kwango was also hit by a “mysterious disease,” which was later identified as severe malaria aggravated by malnutrition. According to the New York Post, “The latest disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo began on Jan. 21, with 419 cases recorded and 53 deaths.”
This comes after DRC was grappled with ‘Disease X last year. According to WHO, such outbreaks have increased by 60 per cent over the last ten years,
(With IANS Inputs)
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