Nigeria Isolates 44 in Ebola Probe

Nigerian health authorities have placed 44 individuals in quarantine as they investigate a potential link between the country's first Ebola case in over a decade and the first confirmed case in Kenya. The probe centers on whether the two patients interacted while transiting through Entebbe International Airport in Uganda. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the inquiry during a press briefing on Thursday.

The Nigerian patient is the Ugandan-born spouse of a diplomat stationed in Abuja. She returned to Nigeria earlier this month after vacationing in Uganda in September. Dr. Wessam Mankoula, the Africa CDC lead for emergency preparedness and response, confirmed that the woman is currently receiving treatment. The 44 people in quarantine are those identified as having close contact with her.

The geographic spread of the virus has expanded beyond its origin in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nigeria is the fourth African nation to record a case in the current outbreak and the first in West Africa. This makes it the farthest point from the epicenter in eastern Congo. The outbreak began in May and has become the fastest spreading on record. At least 4,600 people have died in Congo, with roughly 9,700 infections recorded.

Uganda initially reported about 20 cases but was declared free of the virus in August. Kenya recorded its first case in early October, followed by eight additional confirmed infections. The first Kenyan patient, who has since died, traveled from Congo to Kenya via Uganda. That patient and the Nigerian case were both present at Entebbe International Airport on the same day. Mankoula stated that investigators are looking into whether there was some sort of interaction between the two cases at the airport.

Ebola transmits through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person or through contaminated items. The disease causes severe fever and can be fatal. Individuals are generally not considered infectious until symptoms appear. Nigerian authorities are working to determine how the diplomat's wife was initially exposed to the virus.