Mysterious disease in Congo: zoonotic origin suspected, cases increase among young people
Fever, headache and anaemia among the symptoms. Investigations under way into possible animal transmission
A mysterious disease, which is claiming victims especially among young people in Congo, could have a zoonotic origin, i.e. be transmitted from animals to humans. This suspicion was raised by a health expert in the country, who told Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity that many patients had had contact with wild animals before showing symptoms. However, local and global health authorities have not yet confirmed a direct link.
The flu-like symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, cough and anaemia. The epicentre of the cases is Panzi, Kwango province, south-west Congo. Although the WHO has detected the presence of the malaria virus in 80% of the samples analysed, some experts, including epidemiologist Gianni Rezza, are sceptical that malaria can explain all the cases, suggesting that other causes could be involved.
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