Kenya confirms third Ebola case, a 65-year-old woman
She was a relative of the first patient and already in quarantine. Health officials see no community spread, but three contacts are still unaccounted for.
Kenya has a third confirmed case of Ebola, announced by its Ministry of Health on Friday, Oct. 16. She is a 65-year-old woman, a close relative of the first two patients. She had been isolated since Oct. 6 because of contact with the first patient, and was moved to the Infectious Diseases Unit when she developed symptoms, according to Reuters, as published by Cyprus Mail.
The first case was a 40-year-old man who died on Oct. 5, two days after landing in Nairobi. He had traveled overland from Congo through Uganda. The second, a 39-year-old from the same family, is stable, according to AP, as published by ABC News.
Health officials rule out community transmission for now: all three cases come from the same family circle and those affected were already in quarantine. Of the 130 people who were in contact with the first patient, 127 have been located and three have not. The ministry said the woman was diagnosed early and is receiving supportive care.
The outbreak behind it
The virus is the Bundibugyo strain, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments, according to Reuters. In Congo, the outbreak has passed 9 000 cases and 4 000 deaths. Reuters ranks it as the second-largest in the virus's history. Authorities declared it in mid-May, but it may have started months earlier. Uganda, Kenya's neighbor, had cases in May and June and was declared free of the virus in August.
The border between Congo and Uganda has been closed since May. Kenya tightened checks at crossings such as Busia, where people are asked to wash their hands and have their temperature taken. Local traders told AP that many people cross through informal routes. Barbara Muttimos, of Doctors Without Borders, asked anyone who may have been exposed to speak frankly and be "honest" about that contact.
Still pending: that the three contacts are found and that no cases appear outside that family. The total figure for Congo comes from Reuters; AP cites only deaths.
