UPDATE STATEMENT SANITARY ALERT OF THE DAY
FEBRUARY 8, 2023
(Machine translated) The Government of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, through the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, issues the following update on the situation of the health alert of last February 8, communicated as a result of the unusual epidemiological situation detected in the districts of Nsok Nsomo, related to a number of deaths in two nearby communities, who presented the following symptoms: fever, weakness, vomiting and bloody diarrhea.
We regret to report the death of a suspected case on February 10, located in the Ebibeyin District and who remained in isolation, under observation and treatment at the Provincial Hospital of this district.
Counting this loss, until the preliminary report closing on February 12, 2023, the number of people supposedly deceased due to the epidemiological event is a total of 10. The relationship is detailed in the following table:
These deceased had been initially identified by the investigation carried out by the Ebibeying District Health Office through the epidemiological surveillance focal point for early detection of these cases, which identified the outbreak and notified the Ministry on February 7.
We proceed to clarify that the epidemiological investigation carried out by the technical team of experts from MINSABS and WHO from February 9 to 12 confirmed that 2 of the 10 deaths were not related to the event because they did not meet the epidemiological criteria (direct contact with a case) nor clinical (muscular weakness and at least 2 bleeding manifestations) of case.
Therefore, taking into account the above, the number of deaths up to the technical report closing on February 12, 2023 is a total of 9.
After 4 days of investigation by teams of experts made up of technical personnel from MINSABS and WHO in the districts of Nsoc Nsomo, Ebibeyin {Kie Ntem province) and Mongomo (Wele Nzas province). The epidemiological situation as of February 12 is:
- 9 deceased
- 16 suspected cases are isolated in hospitals for having maintained direct contact with the deceased, of which 14 are asymptomatic and 2 present mild symptoms.
- 21 people remain isolated and monitored in their homes for having been a second-order contact of the deceased, and so far, they are also all asymptomatic.
- Approximately 4,325 people remain in quarantine in their isolated and monitored homes with a daily health control in Kie Ntem district Ntem is maintained according to the restriction of movement surveillance measures and control applied to the established district