Severe malaria: Why it took so long to identify mystery DRC illness?

The health ministry of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) announced late on Tuesday that the mystery illness affecting the southwestern Kwango province has been identified as severe malaria, Reuters reported.

“The mystery has finally been solved. It's a case of severe malaria in the form of a respiratory illness... and weakened by malnutrition,” the health ministry said in a statement.

Ministry officials noted that malnutrition was a significant factor in the illnesses, with the current case total reaching 592 with a case-fatality rate of 6.2 percent.

Earlier this month, the World Health Organization (WHO) was alerted to an outbreak of an undiagnosed disease in the DRC, which has now reportedly claimed 143 lives.

Following days of confusion about the cause of the illness, officials now indicate that test results suggest malaria may be driving the deadly outbreak in DRC’s Kwango province.

Experts, however, warn that other pathogens could also be involved.

Last week, of the initial 12 samples tested, 10 were found positive for malaria.

“The time it took—from the end of October until now—to reach these diagnoses underscores the critical need to strengthen health systems and ensure access to point-of-care and rapid diagnostic tests,” Dr Krutika Kuppalli, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Texas told TRT World.

“Without timely diagnostics, clinicians face significant challenges in determining the most effective treatment plans for patients,” she added.

“In this case, the presence of malaria highlights the importance of early detection – which could have been done had RDTs been available in the region. Anti-malarial treatment and supportive care could have potentially altered the clinical outcomes,” Kuppalli explained.

“Additionally, the severity of disease being exacerbated by severe malnutrition emphasises the need to address fundamental issues like food insecurity to improve health outcomes for individuals with infectious diseases,” she added.

According to Kuppali, this situation serves as a stark reminder of the broader need to enhance surveillance, diagnostics, and access to care. While malaria is the focus this time, future outbreaks involving faster-spreading diseases could pose an even greater threat to global health security.