Vietnam’s Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health convened an emergency meeting on the morning of May 22 to discuss surveillance and prevention measures against the Ebola virus disease following a worsening outbreak in two African countries.

Health experts warned that the current outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment.

At the meeting, representatives from the World Health Organization (WHO) in Vietnam said the Ebola situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda remains complex and requires close monitoring, stressing that Vietnam should not be complacent.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, four healthcare workers in Ituri Province died from Bundibugyo Ebola infections on May 5. By May 16, authorities had confirmed eight laboratory-tested cases, 246 suspected infections and 80 suspected deaths in Ituri Province.

As of May 18, Congo had reported a total of 516 suspected Ebola cases, including 131 deaths across Ituri and North Kivu provinces.

Meanwhile, Uganda’s Ministry of Health confirmed an imported Ebola case from Congo. An elderly man hospitalized with severe symptoms died on May 14. Two days later, Uganda confirmed another imported case linked to Congo.

No vaccine or specific treatment for new strain

Dr. Hoang Minh Duc, Director General of the Department of Preventive Medicine, said Ebola is an extremely dangerous acute infectious disease classified in Vietnam’s Group A category due to its rapid transmission rate and high fatality risk, which can reach up to 90%.

The Ebola virus can spread to humans from wild animals such as fruit bats, porcupines and primates through direct contact with blood, bodily fluids, organs or contaminated materials including bedding and clothing.

“In this outbreak, the disease is caused by the new Bundibugyo strain. At present, vaccines and targeted treatments are only available for the Ebola strain itself, while no vaccine or specific treatment exists for other strains such as Sudan and Bundibugyo,” Dr. Duc said.

He added that the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology and the Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City are fully equipped with personnel, biosafety level III laboratories and gene sequencing and realtime PCR diagnostic capabilities to identify Ebola infections.

Professor Phan Trong Lan, Director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, said his institute and the Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City have already ordered WHO-recommended diagnostic reagents, which are expected to arrive in Vietnam within seven to 10 days.

Concluding the meeting, Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Thi Lien Huong instructed the Department of Preventive Medicine to coordinate closely with WHO in Vietnam to review all outbreak-related information, including high-risk groups and updated guidance on prevention, treatment and handling of Ebola-related fatalities.

She also urged health agencies to urgently review national outbreak response capacity, while the Department of Medical Services Administration was asked to quickly issue directives to hospitals on Ebola preparedness measures.

At border checkpoints, authorities were instructed to review travelers returning from high-risk areas. Individuals potentially still within the incubation period must receive guidance so local authorities can monitor and supervise them appropriately.

“WHO assesses the public health risk from the current Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda as high at the national and regional levels, but low globally, including in Vietnam,” Dr. Hoang Minh Duc said.

“To date, Vietnam has never recorded any suspected Ebola case. The risk of Ebola entering Vietnam from Congo and Uganda remains low. However, the possibility of transmission through incoming travelers from the affected countries cannot be ruled out.”

N. Huyen