Suspected Ebola cases in Uganda increases to 36

GENEVA - Latest figures showed there were 36 suspected cases of the Ebola hemorrhagic fever in Uganda, including 14 deaths, a spokesperson of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.

Spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told reporters that the Ugandan Ministry of Health notified the WHO about the outbreak of the deadly disease in the western part of the country on July 28.

Early reports said a total of 20 cases, including 14 deaths, were reported since the beginning of July.

An isolation ward has been set up in affected areas where suspected cases are being treated. The WHO is helping the government in case management and intervention control, Jasarevic said.

Ebola hemorrhagic fever spreads rapidly through direct contact with infected people or animals, and can be transmitted through blood, bodily fluids and even contact with clothes worn by an infected person, according to Medecins Sans Frontieres.

MSF has sent an emergency team to Kigadi in western Uganda's Kibaale district to help fight the outbreak of the Ebola virus.

The team's priorities are to identify and care for people who have been infected, as well as all those who have been in contact with them, and to ensure that emergency medical services are functioning, according to a statement issued by the MSF on Tuesday.

They will also work to identify how and where the virus is spreading, and to isolate people who are infected so as to limit the transmission of the disease.