The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the spreading Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on the 17th (local time) that "the Ebola virus disease outbreaks in the DRC and Uganda constitute a public health emergency of international concern." However, the WHO clarified that the situation does not amount to a global pandemic.
Suspected Ebola cases exceeded 300 as of the previous day, with 88 deaths recorded. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a total of 336 suspected cases. According to the WHO, 246 suspected patients have been identified across three areas in the DRC's Ituri Province — Bunia, Rwampara, and Mongbwalu — with 80 of them having died. In Uganda, two confirmed cases imported from the DRC have been reported, one of whom died at a hospital in the capital, Kampala.
Ebola virus disease is an acute febrile and hemorrhagic illness caused by infection with the Ebola virus. Transmission occurs through contact with infected animals or direct or indirect exposure to the blood or bodily fluids of infected or deceased individuals. In Korea, it is classified and managed as a Class 1 infectious disease. Early symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain, while severe cases can progress to hemorrhaging, decreased white blood cell and platelet counts, and elevated liver enzyme levels. The fatality rate can reach as high as 90 percent depending on the virus strain and the level of the healthcare system.
The current outbreak has been identified as caused by the relatively rare Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. While previous Ebola outbreaks in the DRC were caused by the Zaire species, the Bundibugyo strain differs genetically from Zaire by approximately 40 percent, rendering existing vaccines and treatments ineffective. Currently, no approved vaccines or treatments exist for the Bundibugyo strain. As a result, on-the-ground responses must rely entirely on non-pharmaceutical interventions, including contact tracing, infection control, the operation of Ebola treatment facilities, and safe burial procedures.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) announced it will designate the DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan as priority quarantine management areas starting on the 19th, strengthening entry quarantine measures. Travelers entering Korea after visiting or staying in these countries must report their health status through the Q-code system or a health declaration form, and the National Quarantine Station will conduct full quarantine screening at aircraft gates for all arrivals from the affected regions. The KDCA assessed that the likelihood of domestic transmission is low, given that Ebola outbreaks are limited to parts of Africa and the disease spreads through contact with the blood or bodily fluids of infected individuals.
