Ebola Kills Health Care Worker in Kampala Uganda
Recombinomics Commentary
December 4, 2007
Uganda's main referral hospital, Mulago has received its first Ebola patient since the deadly virus broke out in the country's southwestern district of Bundibugyo.
Dr Yonah Kule, an employee of the International Air Ambulance (IAA) who contracted the highly communicable haemorrhagic fever while treating patients at Bundibugyo hospital last week, was admitted to the top most government medical centre in Kampala at the weekend.
"Yes, he (Kule) is in our isolation unit and he is fair now," Dr Edward Ddumba, the director of Mulago hospital told Daily Monitor yesterday.
A blog by two doctors on site in Bundibugyo indicated Dr Kule died tonight. The blog indicated he had a headache and fever when he checked in Friday night, and was ambulatory today after IV treatment.
The death of this health care workers hightens transmission concerns for the Ebola in Uganda. The number of health care workers hospitalized is high, and many did not return to their hospitalized patients.
Personel from WHO and Doctors Without Borders have arrived, but the situation in Uganda continues to deteriorate. Some hospitals have refused patients, while other agencies have limited movement.
The Ebola appears to be a new species and is likely a recombinant.
Sequence data on the new isoaltes would be useful.
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