UN Health Agency Finds Typhoid in Congo Amid Ebola Outbreak

20 September 2007 -- The World Health Organization says it has found typhoid in an area of the Democratic Republic of Congo where health experts are working to fight an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus.

Last week, DRC officials ordered a quarantine in central Kasai Occidental province, after the U.N. health agency said five people there tested positive for the Ebola virus. Now, WHO officials say they have discovered five cases of typhoid in the same area.

WHO spokesman, Greg Hartl tells Reuters news agency that one of the typhoid cases also tested positive for Ebola.

Angola Thursday temporarily closed its borders with the DRC in that area to prevent any spread of the disease.

More than 166 people have died from an unidentified disease in the region in recent weeks and 372 others are reported to be ill.

The Ebola virus causes a type of hemorrhagic fever that can cause bleeding from the eyes, ears and other parts of the body. The illness results in death for 50 to 90 percent of cases.

Typhoid fever is a bacterial disease spread through contaminated water or drink. It can be treated with antibiotics.

Source: VOA News

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