Congo government says mysterious disease was behind the deaths of dozens of women and children, finally determined to be severe malaria

JOHANNESBURG — For weeks, it was simply called “Disease X.” but, mysterious flu-like illness The murder of more than 143 people, mostly women and young children, in the Democratic Republic of Congo has finally been identified.

“The mystery has finally been solved,” the Congolese Ministry of Health declared in a statement on Tuesday. “This is a case of severe malaria in the form of a respiratory disease.”

Health officials said malnutrition in the worst-hit areas weakened local populations’ immunity, making them more susceptible to infection. People infected with malaria infection exhibit symptoms such as headache, fever, cough, and body aches.

Congo’s health minister has told reporters that the country is on “utmost alert” against the spread of the previously unidentified disease, and health authorities told CBS News in early December that the outbreak He said the remoteness of the epicenter and the lack of a diagnosis are causing difficulties. Initiate a coordinated response.

At least 592 cases have been reported since Congo’s Ministry of Health first issued an alert on October 29. The ministry said the disease has a fatality rate of 6.25%. According to the World Health Organization, more than half of the recorded deaths were in children under the age of five who were severely malnourished when they contracted the disease.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference on December 10 that 10 out of 12 samples from patients suffering from the mysterious disease tested positive for malaria, but at the time, tests for other diseases were still underway. He said he was going.

The Congolese government had sent a rapid intervention team of epidemiologists and other medical experts to Kwango province, 435 miles southeast of the capital Kinshasa. Their aim was to identify the disease and initiate an appropriate response. Government officials had earlier warned local residents not to touch the bodies of infected or deceased people.

Congo has been hit by many disease outbreaks in recent years, including typhoid fever, malaria, and anemia. This country also Occurrence of poxAccording to the WHO, there are more than 47,000 suspected cases and 1,000 suspected deaths from the disease.

Antimalarial drugs provided by the WHO are being distributed at local health centers in Congo, and WHO officials said more medical supplies were expected to arrive in Congo on Wednesday.

Congo is in the rainy season and is seeing frequent increases in malaria cases, which will certainly make treatment difficult for those most at risk.

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