A mystery disease in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is spreading mainly among children and putting severely malnourished people at risk, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), which sent experts to the region to investigate the outbreak.
In an update published on Sunday evening, the WHO said 406 cases of the undiagnosed disease were recorded between October 24 and December 5 — 31 of which were deaths.
The symptoms of the disease, the cause of which has not been established, are fever, headache, cough, runny nose and body aches. It is spreading in the Panzi health zone in DRC's southwestern Kwango province.
All severe cases were reported to be severely malnourished and most reported cases were children, particularly those aged under five, the WHO said.
“The area is rural and remote, with access further hindered by the ongoing rainy season,” the UN's health agency said. “The challenges, coupled with limited diagnostics in the region, have delayed the identification of the underlying cause.”
The statement said malaria is common in the area and could contribute to the cases. Experts said it is possible more than one disease is contributing to the cases.
Reuters
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