Nigeria's Health Ministry confirmed on Tuesday its first known Ebola case in the current outbreak, in the capital, Abuja, after a woman who had arrived from Uganda tested positive for the virus.1,2,3,4,6
The woman began showing symptoms on Oct. 7 and was admitted to a private hospital in Abuja on Oct. 11, where she was later diagnosed with Ebola, the ministry said. Health Minister Muhammad Pate said she had arrived on an international flight from Uganda. It is unclear when she came to Nigeria.1,4,6
Pate said authorities had begun tracing 44 people identified as contacts of the patient. "We are doing everything possible to contain this case by tracing all the contacts the individual may have had," he said. In a statement, the ministry said she was "currently in isolation and receiving medical care" and had "received care for several days before the diagnosis was confirmed." Contact tracing is also covering healthcare workers, caregivers and travel contacts, the statement said.1,4,6
Uganda's Ministry of Health said the patient had only transited through Uganda, and that she is a Nigerian woman who had been on a business trip to Congo's eastern region. Nigerian authorities have not disclosed her nationality. The Ugandan ministry said in a statement, "Travel through Uganda does not establish that infection occurred here. The location of exposure remains under investigation." It also said Uganda has "no confirmed active Ebola cases," although Uganda had previously reported cases and later declared itself free of the virus.1,4
Nigeria's last Ebola outbreak was in 2014. The country recorded 20 cases in that outbreak, which was declared over after three months, according to the PBS account. France 24 described Tuesday's case as the country's first registered since 2014. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said two weeks ago that it was stepping up surveillance after Ebola was detected in Kenya, and it listed its priorities as "early detection, isolation and referral, laboratory diagnosis, infection prevention and control, contact tracing, risk communication and protection of health care workers."1,4
The spread beyond Congo has extended across the region. Kenya reported its first case on Oct. 6, a businessman in his forties who had lived in the Democratic Republic of Congo and who died in Nairobi on Oct. 5, France 24 reported. Most of the subsequent cases there have been among people closely connected to him. The ninth case, a 24-year-old man described as a close family member of the first case, was confirmed on Monday, the Kenyan health ministry said. The United States on Tuesday warned its citizens against travel to Kenya due to "health risks."1,4,6
Dr. Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control, said on X that "we are facing an extremely serious threat," with a fatality rate of nearly 50% of cases. "This Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak has already become the most geographically extensive in history, affecting several countries spread across three regions of Africa," he said. Kaseya urged the international community to send money, medical supplies and health workers. "My appeal to the international community is urgent: ACT NOW," he said.1,4
The outbreak is thought to have started in eastern Congo, not far from the Ugandan border, and most known cases remain in that country, according to DW. Congo's figures differ across the reports. PBS said the virus has infected more than 9,500 people and killed more than 4,600. France 24, citing health authorities, said Congo's epidemic had killed 4,381 people out of more than 9,000 confirmed cases in the country. The World Health Organization has said the outbreak is the fastest-spreading Ebola outbreak on record and is on track to exceed the deadliest on record, the 2014 to 2016 outbreak in West Africa, which killed 11,000 people.1,4,6
Nigeria established an Ebola task force in June, after the outbreak began in Congo in mid-May. Femi Gbajabiamila, chief of staff to President Bola Tinubu, said when the task force was announced, "We do not want a repeat of what happened during the last outbreak when a carrier entered the country, and everyone was scrambling to respond."1
The ministry has not said how or where the woman was exposed. The Ugandan ministry said that question remains under investigation. The Nigerian contact-tracing effort is continuing, and the ministry has not announced whether any of the 44 contacts have shown symptoms.1,4
Gbajabiamila also said at the time, "We have covered a lot of ground and established structures to address any potential threat."1
