The Swiss government has identified Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola patient as a Swiss woman and the wife of a staff member of Switzerland’s Embassy in Abuja, saying neither she nor her husband travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo, the epicentre of the current Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak.
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Switzerland’s Foreign Ministry disclosed this on Friday, providing further details about the patient whose infection was confirmed by Nigerian authorities earlier in the week.
According to the ministry, the woman and her husband had recently travelled together to Uganda, but neither of them visited the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“The Swiss woman, who is symptomatic, has been hospitalised for about a week at a private clinic in Abuja,” the ministry said.
“The infection may have occurred during a trip to Uganda approximately two weeks ago,” it added.
The ministry stressed, however, that the precise source of the infection remains under investigation.
Nigeria had on Tuesday confirmed an imported case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease in the Federal Capital Territory after laboratory testing confirmed the infection.
The World Health Organization said the patient had a recent travel history to Uganda, developed symptoms on October 7 and sought treatment at a private health facility in Abuja on October 11 before laboratory confirmation on October 20.
Health authorities have so far identified 44 contacts who are being monitored as investigations continue into the patient’s travel and exposure history.
The Swiss government said the woman’s husband had been placed in isolation but had not developed symptoms.
“Her husband is in isolation; he has shown no symptoms. He accompanied his wife on the trip, during which she is believed to have contracted the Ebola virus,” the ministry said.
“Neither individual travelled” to the Democratic Republic of Congo, it added.
The clarification contradicts earlier suggestions that the patient may have travelled through the DRC before arriving in Nigeria.
The World Health Organization has also said it has no verified evidence that the woman visited the DRC, while investigations are continuing into how and where she contracted the virus.
The Swiss Foreign Ministry further disclosed that the remaining 25 employees at its Abuja embassy — comprising eight Swiss nationals and 17 local staff — were doing well.
Following consultations with Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization, the ministry said the other embassy staff members did not need to go into isolation.
Switzerland is also considering the possible repatriation of the patient for further medical care, according to the ministry.
The case involves the Bundibugyo species of Ebola virus, the strain driving the ongoing outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of Congo in May.
The strain currently has no approved specific vaccine or treatment, making early detection, isolation, contact tracing and supportive medical care critical to controlling transmission.
Nigeria’s case has widened the geographic spread of the outbreak, with the WHO saying the country became the fifth nation to detect the virus since the DRC outbreak was declared in May.
The outbreak has already spread beyond the DRC into other African countries, including Uganda and Kenya.
Uganda recorded cases earlier in the outbreak before being declared Ebola-free in August.
The Swiss authorities’ statement has now raised further questions about where the Nigerian patient became infected, particularly because she and her husband travelled in Uganda but, according to Bern, did not enter the DRC.
Health authorities are also examining whether there could be any epidemiological connection between the Nigerian case and an earlier case detected in Kenya after both patients travelled through Uganda.
As of October 19, the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo had recorded more than 9,600 confirmed cases and over 4,600 deaths, according to WHO data.
For now, Nigerian authorities continue to monitor the identified contacts while the patient remains isolated and receives medical care in Abuja.
The Swiss government maintained that the woman’s exact source of infection has not yet been definitively established, despite Uganda being considered a possible location of exposure.
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