Two men from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, presenting symptoms compatible with Ebola disease, were placed in isolation in Brazil, even if the presence of the virus was ruled out for one of them, according to the authorities.
Brazil has strengthened its precautionary measures as the deadly virus spreads in the DRC and Uganda. But the Health Ministry said on Sunday that there was “no confirmation” of the presence of Ebola in the two patients, whose nationality was not specified.
In Rio de Janeiro, the State Health Secretariat announced on Saturday the placement in solitary confinement of a man, who arrived on May 22 from Uganda to Brazil, “presenting viral symptoms such as cough, chills and diarrhea.”
The man has since tested positive for malaria and his tests showed “negative results for Ebola”, the health ministry said on Sunday.
But authorities said he “remains placed in solitary confinement” while the investigation concludes.
In Sao Paulo, a 37-year-old man from the DRC “presented symptoms compatible” with “viral hemorrhagic fevers,” the ministry said, without specifying the date of entry of this man on Brazilian soil.
The patient was “placed in isolation” at the Emilio Ribas Institute of Infectious Disease.
The man was diagnosed positive for a severe form of meningitis, but “the investigation into Ebola continues until the specific analyzes are completed,” said Rigiane de Paula, of the state’s disease control coordination, according to a statement released Sunday.
The Ministry of Health emphasizes that “the risk of transmission of the disease in Brazil and South America is considered low.”
The DRC, one of the poorest countries in the world, declared on May 15 a new Ebola epidemic hitting its immense territory of more than 100 million inhabitants. The WHO has issued an international health alert.
The virus that causes Ebola, which causes an extremely deadly hemorrhagic fever, has already been detected in three Congolese provinces as well as in neighboring Uganda, where two new cases were confirmed on Friday, bringing the number of confirmed cases in the East African country to nine.
In the DRC, 246 deaths out of more than 1,000 suspected cases were recorded, according to a report Thursday from the Africa CDC, the health agency of the African Union.
