En esta noticia
A new health emergency set off international alarms after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an Ebola outbreak an “public health emergency of international concern”.
The virus has already caused dozens of deaths in central Africa and is especially concerning because of the rapid spread of a rare strain for which there is still no approved vaccine.
Both the United States and other countries have begun activating monitoring and control protocols amid fears of an international expansion of the outbreak.
WHO launched another global alert: What is the new virus?
The detected virus corresponds to the Bundibugyo variant, a rare and infrequent strain of Ebola that is especially concerning because there are still no approved vaccines or specific treatments.
The outbreak is concentrated mainly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, where hundreds of suspected cases and dozens of deaths have already been reported. According to international health agencies, the virus may have been circulating for weeks before being officially identified, which facilitated its spread in different communities and medical centers.
The WHO warned that the situation is especially delicate due to armed conflicts, lack of health infrastructure, and constant mobility between border regions. In addition, several health workers were infected during the early stages of the outbreak.
It could cause the next pandemic: How is it transmitted and why is it dangerous?
One of the biggest fears of health authorities is that the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola currently has no approved commercial vaccines, unlike other better-known variants of the virus. This limits the tools available to quickly contain infections.
Ebola is transmitted through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, contaminated objects, or deceased people who carry the virus. The disease can cause severe hemorrhagic fever and has historical mortality rates that range between 25% and 50% in the currently detected variant.
Although from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) they assured that the risk for the United States remains low, international surveillance and monitoring protocols for possible exposures have already been activated.