American doctor working in Congo tests positive for Ebola, CDC and aid group say
An American doctor working with a missionary medical organization in the Democratic Republic of Congo tested positive for Ebolathe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the mission group said Monday.
The individual was taken to Germany for treatment, the CDC said.
At least 131 people are believed to have died from the latest virus outbreak in Congo, Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba said on Tuesday. There was also one death in neighboring Uganda, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. The WHO declared the outbreak a global health emergency on Sunday.
The Serge Missionary Group said Dr Peter Stafford had tested positive for Bundibugyo Ebola virus variant after being exposed while treating patients at Nyankunde hospital in the Congolese town of Bunia, where he has worked since 2023. His wife, who is also a doctor with the humanitarian group, and another doctor remain asymptomatic, the group said.
“All three medical professionals have strictly adhered to established quarantine protocols since the potential exposure,” Serge said in a statement posted on his website.
Six other Americans, in addition to Stafford, should be evacuated from the area to ensure they can be monitored or treated, the CDC said Monday.
Sources previously told CBS News that at least six Americans were exposed during the epidemic.
The first suspected case in this outbreak was a health worker who reported symptoms starting April 24 and died at a medical center in Bunia, WHO said.
Since then, suspected cases have increased significantly and crossed national borders. Several factors, including the location of the outbreak (an urban area with significant population mobility) and attacks by armed groups in the region, have health officials concerned about further spread.
This outbreak is only the third known outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain, one of the viruses responsible for Ebola disease. Unlike the more common Zaire strain, there is no vaccine or treatment for this strain, first discovered in Uganda in 2007.
Ebola viruses are spread from person to person through bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. Early symptoms of the disease include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. As the disease progresses, symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, rash, organ dysfunction and sometimes internal or external bleeding, the WHO said.
Because it is spread through close contact, family members, caregivers, and medical personnel may be at high risk if exposed to sick patients.
