Congo Disease update: 891 cases and 48 deaths

The World Health Organization’s updated toll on the still unidentified disease affecting the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has recorded 891 cases as of December 16, with 48 deaths. Based on tests conducted on 430 samples, which tested positive for malaria and common respiratory viruses (influenza A/H1N1 – pdm09, rhinovirus, Sars-CoV-2, human coronaviruses, parainfluenza viruses and human adenovirus), the WHO advances the hypothesis that the origin of the pathology is a combination of common and seasonal viral respiratory infections and falciparum malaria, exacerbated by acute malnutrition. The main causes of the disease include food insecurity and difficulties in accessing health care. This would explain the increase in severe infections and deaths that have disproportionately affected children under 5 years of age. The WHO highlights that while the overall level of risk to public health within affected communities is assessed as high, at the national level the risk is considered low due to the restricted nature of the event. The UN health agency finally confirms that ‘at regional and global level the risk remains low at this time’, as reported by the media.