Kenya’s Ministry of Health confirmed on Friday a third case of Ebola in a 65-year-old woman who is a close relative of the two previously identified individuals, as reported by the news agency Reuters.
The Ministry stated that the woman had been under quarantine since October 6. After developing a fever, a sore throat, and weakness, she was moved to a separate isolation area, and a sample was collected for testing. The subsequent analysis confirmed that she has Ebola.
According to the Ministry’s statement, the disease was detected in the woman at an early stage; she is currently receiving supportive medical care, which improves her chances of recovery.
The cases confirmed in Kenya are linked to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo). The Reuters report notes that this particular outbreak is one of the largest ever recorded globally, with more than 9,000 infections and over 4,000 deaths documented. The first case in Kenya emerged last week, after a Kenyan man—who had been ill for some time in Congo—traveled overland to Uganda and subsequently arrived in Nairobi by plane on October 3rd. Relatives picked him up from the airport and took him to a hospital, where he passed away on October 5th.
The confirmation of a third case underscores the continued importance of contact tracing and quarantine measures to contain the spread of the disease.
