A patient in France has tested positive for Ebola after returning from humanitarian work in an endemic area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the French Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday.
This is the first case reported in France, and the first to test positive outside Africa, during the second major Ebola outbreak on record in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The outbreak is caused by Bundibugyo, a rare strain of the virus for which there is no vaccine or specific treatment. At least 267 people have died in the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and two in Uganda, according to the latest data from the CDC. There are more than 1,000 confirmed cases in the DRC.
The French health ministry said in a statement that the undisclosed French patient was “immediately admitted to a specialized facility” after returning home and was in stable condition.
“All precautionary measures, especially the isolation of the patient, were implemented immediately after entering the country, including transport to a safe hospital to prevent the risk of infection,” the ministry said. “A thorough epidemiological investigation is underway to identify anyone who may have come into contact with the patient.”
Those who may have come into contact with the patient will be quarantined at home for 21 days, during which time they will be closely monitored by health authorities.
The ministry reiterated that the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has assessed the risk of Ebola infection as “very low for the general European population” and that France has established a surveillance system for returning French humanitarian workers.
Earlier this year, European authorities dealt with another Ebola case when American doctor Peter Stafford contracted Ebola while working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and was evacuated to receive treatment in Germany. Stafford was discharged from the hospital and returned to the United States in early June.
