Kenya has confirmed a second case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease, bringing the country’s total to two cases and one death, the Ministry of Health said on Wednesday, October 14.
The latest patient is a 39-year-old man and a close family member of the first confirmed case, who died last week. He was already under a mandatory 21-day quarantine when he developed fever, fatigue and joint pain on October 13.
Tests at the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the KEMRI-CDC laboratory returned positive results, the ministry said.
The patient has been admitted to a designated treatment centre, where he is receiving supportive care.
Health authorities said they had traced 113 of the 128 contacts linked to the first case. Of those traced, 108 are in quarantine in Kenya, while five are outside the country.
Wessam Mankoula, Head of Emergency Preparedness at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said Kenya’s contact-tracing efforts compared favourably with those in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where identifying contacts remains a challenge.
“For every one case of Ebola, we target to identify well over 60 contacts,” Mankoula said, warning that inadequate contact tracing can allow the virus to continue spreading.
The Ministry of Health has urged the public to remain calm and advised anyone experiencing symptoms consistent with Ebola to seek medical attention promptly.
