Mysterious ‘Unknown’ Illness Kills 143, Sparking Pandemic Fear: WHO

United States: A new disease that has remained ‘unknown‘ has claimed 143 people in Congo in an incident that has worried the health sector and the World Health Organization.

The victims are showing various symptoms, including high fever and severe headaches for patients, which affected women and children most, according to the local authorities.

More about the news

Fatalities are in Kwango province in the Southwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and neighboring Angola.

Both Remy Saki, the deputy governor of the province, and Apollinaire Yumba, the minister of health said that currently officials are taking samples and doing an analysis to determine the nature of the disease behind the outbreak.

Furthermore, the officials have mentioned that the prevailing situation is “extremely worrying,” and the death toll is climbing fast. As of November 25, 67 deaths were reported from the disease, Daily Mail reported.

Deadly unknown disease

The patients of the illness are said to be passing on in their homes and barely get any chance at treatment. The country is also dealing with a monkeypox outbreak.

There are no test results from the health officials, and it is not clear if the patients tested negative for other general diseases.

Moreover, there is no input on what disease could be causing the mortalities, as experts noted, where the DRC has now been facing more than twelve outbreaks of Ebola.

Contracted through contact with fruit bats, this virus produces a flu-like illness in patients before they develop nausea, bleeding, and brain complications.

For the particular outbreak declared in 2019, more than 3,250 people fell sick while 2,100 died, Daily Mail reported.

Viral infections have been noted all over the country, including in the provinces experiencing strange disease outbreaks.

Authorities in that province have not revealed whether or not they have considered monkeypox as the probable culprit.

Civil Society leader Cephorien Manzanza said that the situation is extremely worrying as more and more people get infected.