Ivory Coast detects first Ebola case in 25 years

Ivory Coast has declared a first case of the Ebola hemorrhagic virus in 25 years, the health minister and the World Health Organization (WHO) said separately on Saturday.

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Health Minister Pierre Dimba said on national television that it was an isolated case of an 18-year-old girl who travelled from neighbouring Guinea.

She had left the city of Labe in Guinea by road, arriving in Ivory Coast on Wednesday, he added.

“This is an isolated and imported case,” he said, adding that the patient was currently being treated in intensive care in Abidjan” he said.

Ivory Coast already had doses of the vaccine against Ebola, which go to anyone who had been in contact with her, such as the medical staff treating her.

Also present was the Prime Minister, Patrick Achi, who chaired the emergency inter-ministerial meeting earlier Saturday, the minister added.

“The authorities had already activated an emergency plan which included the identification and surveillance of anyone who had come into contact with the patient.”

Guinea early this week also confirmed a first case of Marburg virus in West Africa. Marburg virus disease is highly infectious haemorrhagic fever similar to Ebola.

Transmission of both deadly diseases occurs through contact with infected bodily fluids and tissue, while symptoms include headache, vomiting blood, muscle pains and bleeding.

The WHO said there was no indication the current case in Ivory Coast is linked to the outbreak in Guinea earlier this year. It said further investigation and genomic sequencing will identify the strain and determine if there was a connection.

“It is of immense concern that this outbreak has been declared in Abidjan, a metropolis of more than 4 million people,” Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, said in the statement.

“However, much of the world’s expertise in tackling Ebola is here on the continent and Ivory Coast can tap into this experience and bring the response to full speed,” she said.

MTO/NAN