11/10/2022
We have recently had several clients who are traveling to Uganda.
We have just been made aware of an outbreak of Ebola in that country and want to get this information out to you ASAP.
Summary
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is issuing this Health Alert Network (HAN) Health Update as a follow-up to a HAN Health Advisory (Outbreak of Ebola virus disease (Sudan ebolavirus) in Central Uganda) issued on October 6, 2022. This Health Update serves to inform public health departments, public health laboratories, and clinicians in the United States about the ongoing outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Uganda caused by Sudan virus (species Sudan ebolavirus). No suspect or confirmed EVD cases related to this outbreak have been reported in the United States (U.S.) or other countries outside of Uganda to date. However, as a precaution because of increasing cases in Uganda, CDC is communicating with public health departments, public health laboratories, and healthcare workers in the United States to provide an update and raise awareness of this outbreak and the potential for importation of cases.
Background
On September 20, 2022, the Ministry of Health of Uganda officially declared an outbreak of EVD caused by Sudan virus (species Sudan ebolavirus) in Mubende District, Central Uganda.
As of November 5, 2022, a total of 132 confirmed cases of EVD have been identified in Uganda; 39% of confirmed cases have died. To date, there have been a total of 61 patients with confirmed EVD that have recovered from illness and been discharged. Seven districts in Uganda have reported cases since the outbreak began, including Mubende, Kassanda, Kyegegwa, Bunyangabu, Kagadi, Wakiso, and the capital city of Kampala. Two of these districts (Bunyangabu and Kagadi) have completed 21 days of monitoring of all identified contacts of confirmed cases and have had no new EVD cases identified since. CDC is working closely with the Ministry of Health of Uganda, the World Health Organization, and other partners to support the response to this outbreak.
Travel volume from Uganda to the United States is low, and there are no direct flights from Uganda to the U.S. Since October 7, 2022, U.S.-bound air passengers who have been to Uganda in the prior 21 days are being redirected to five U.S. airports where they undergo entry health screenings as part of a layered mitigation approach that, in combination with other public health measures already in place to detect ill arriving travelers, are designed to reduce the risk of introduction and spread of disease in the U.S.
Any patient with travel to Uganda in the past 21 days who have clinical symptoms such as fever, headache, muscle and joint pain, fatigue, loss of appetite, gastrointestinal symptoms, or unexplained bleeding should isolate themself and seek assistance immediately.
