Similar to influenza…an unknown disease kills 143 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Local authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo reported that an unknown disease has killed 143 people in a southwestern province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and said that health officials were investigating the mysterious disease.
The deaths were recorded between 10 and 25 November in the Panzi Health District in Gwangju Province.
Deputy Governor of Kwangju Province, Remi Sakmi, said that the infected people showed flu-like symptoms, including high temperature and severe headaches.
A local epidemiologist said that women and children were most affected by the disease.

Symptoms of the disease

Symptoms include fever, headache, cough and anemia, regional Health Minister Apollinaire Yumba told reporters over the weekend. The region’s deputy governor, Remy Psaki, told the Associated Press that between 67 and 143 people had died, and that a team of epidemiologists was expected to arrive in the region to take samples and determine the problem.

Yumba advised residents to remain vigilant and refrain from touching dead bodies to avoid contamination, and called on national and international partners to send medical supplies to deal with the health crisis.

Monkeypox outbreak

Congo is suffering an outbreak of monkeypox virus, with 47,000 suspected cases and 1,000 suspected deaths, according to the World Health Organization.