Another Fatality Linked to Ebola Super Spreader in Uganda
Recombinomics Commentary
December 12, 2007
One of the deaths today was the 20-something daughter of Jeremiah Muhindo. She had been fairly stable, and we had hoped she would pull through.
The above comments describe another fatal Ebola infection linked to Jeremiah Muhindo. He had visited a number of early Ebola infections and was briefly hospitalized at the Bundibuyo hospital. He was the first case to die, on November 24. Afew days later a number of health care workers at the hospital developed symptoms and at least four had died, around December 4, including his primary doctor, Jonah Kule. In addition, six direct contacts (his mother, brother, wife, daughter, and two friends) were hospitalized. Media reports indicate his brother, daughter, and one friend ahs died in the past few days.
The above clustering of hospitalized and fatal cases is similar to clusters in the SARS outbreak linked to super spreaders. Analysis of SARS CoV sequences indicated the index case for the international spread, who had also seen patients prior to becoming ill, was infected with multiple variants, which may have contributed to the super spreader status of the index case, as well as contacts who spread SARS CoV to contacts, including health care workers in Hong Kong, Singapore, Hanoi, and Toronto.
Sequences from Ebola isoaltes from this cluster would be useful.
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