‘Disease X’ outbreak widens as UN sends health team to Congo

More cases of a mysterious flu-like illness labeled “Disease X” were reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the World Health Organization has dispatched a rapid response team to help investigate.

Over 400 cases of the unidentified illness — marked by fever, headache, cough, runny nose, and body aches — have been reported since late October in the Panzi health zone in southwest Congo, the WHO said in a statement Sunday. While more than half of the cases involve children under 5, a 50-year-old man hospitalized in Lucca, Italy, is suspected to have recovered from the disease after a business trip to Congo, Il Tempo reported.

Thirty-one deaths have been recorded, down from 79 reported last week, according to the WHO. The outbreak is centered in a remote rural area of Kwango province, where poor road conditions and heavy rains mean it takes nearly 48 hours to reach from Kinshasa. The challenges of accessing the region have hampered efforts to confirm fatalities linked to the illness. All severe cases involve individuals suffering from severe malnutrition, adding complexity to identifying an infectious source.

Credit: Bloomberg

“These challenges, coupled with limited diagnostics in the region, have delayed the identification of the underlying cause,” the WHO said. “Teams are collecting samples for laboratory testing, providing a more detailed clinical characterization of the detected cases, investigating the transmission dynamics, and actively searching for additional cases, both within health facilities and at the community level.”

At least 10 new suspected cases and one additional death were reported on Dec. 6, bringing the total number of affected individuals in Panzi to 416, according to Okapi Radio. The true death toll, however, may be much higher, as many patients are believed to have died outside health facilities, the report said.

Acute pneumonia, influenza, Covid-19, measles and malaria are considered as potential causal factors based on the signs and symptoms of those afflicted, the WHO said, adding that response teams are helping to treat patients and raise awareness of the outbreak within affected communities.

Malaria is common in the area, and it may be causing or contributing to the cases, the United Nations health agency said. “Laboratory tests are underway to determine the exact cause. At this stage, it is also possible that more than one disease is contributing to the cases and deaths.”