Health officials are racing to determine the nature of the disease, which has sickened hundreds of people in recent weeks.
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A mysterious disease has killed at least 71 people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in recent weeks – and officials have no idea what it is.
The disease is “still of unknown origin” and was detected in late October in the Kwango province, which is in the southwestern part of the Central African country, according to the DRC’s Ministry of Public Health, Hygiene and Social Security.
About 380 people have gotten sick so far, and the deaths were recorded between November 10 and 25. Twenty-seven people died in hospitals, and 44 died in the community, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
Most of the deaths have been among children over 15 years old, the health ministry said.
"At the current stage, we cannot speak of a large-scale epidemic," Roger Kamba, the DRC's public health minister, told journalists on Thursday.
For now, there are still more questions than answers about the unidentified illness. But here’s what we know so far.
What are the mystery disease’s symptoms?
The disease has flu-like symptoms, including fever, headache, cough, and anaemia, according to provincial health minister Apollinaire Yumba.
Among the hospitalised patients, 10 died because of a lack of blood transfusion and 17 died due to respiratory problems, Kamba said.
What are local health authorities doing?
The DRC’s health ministry said it is analysing samples from patients and doing "in-depth field investigations" to identify the disease.
It also advised people to avoid large gatherings, observe basic hygiene guidelines, and report suspected cases to local health authorities.
"The disease resembles a respiratory disease but it is difficult to talk about how it is transmitted before the results of the analysis of the collected samples," Kamba said.
Are international agencies involved?
Yes. An official from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) previously told Euronews Health that the agency is working with the DRC government to investigate the alert.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has also dispatched a team to the region to collect patient samples for lab investigations, a spokesperson told Euronews Health.
The UN health agency is “working with the national authorities to follow up on reports of an unidentified disease and to understand the situation,” the spokesperson added.
What other health issues is the DRC grappling with?
The mystery disease comes amid an mpox outbreak that the DRC has been struggling to contain for more than a year.
In 2024, the country reported more than 47,000 suspected mpox cases and more than 1,000 suspected deaths, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC).
