Sudan health ministry affirms Sudan Ebola free
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.aspx?id=249163
Oct 28,2014

HARTOUM, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Sudan's Ministry of Health on Monday reiterated that Sudan is free of Ebola disease, noting that no confirmed or suspected case has been registered.

"The ministry (of health) reiterates that the country is free of Ebola disease and that no confirmed or suspected cases were registered", the ministry said in a press release.

"Also, nothing was received from the World Health Organization (WHO) indicating existence of any infection cases in the neighboring countries, which confirms that Chad and South Sudan are free from any Ebola cases", it added.

The ministry further announced that it has worked to increase sensitivity of disease monitoring at the crossings of the border states and new monitoring centers have been established in five states of Darfur besides West and South Kordofan, White Nile and the Red Sea States, stressing that cadres who operating disease monitoring and personnel of the forces have been trained on disease detection, means of prevention, the necessary medical interventions and infection control.

In the meantime, the ministry admitted a great increase in malaria infection rates in Khartoum, Gezira, West Kordofan and North Darfur States, saying that "malaria has become an epidemic threat where some cases of severe malaria have been registered in Gezira and West Kordofan States".

Some social networks have recently circulated information on emergency cases of Ebola in Sudan, particularly when a female child died at a government hospital in Khartoum after been infected with symptoms similar to that of Ebola.

However, the Sudanese health authorities reiterated that the deceased child was infected with severe malaria, which was confirmed by laboratory tests.

The Sudanese authorities have earlier intensified their precautionary measures to prevent entry of Ebola virus to the country, including vaccination of all the individuals coming from the disease-hit countries, namely western Africa, in addition to verification of the safety of the planes in accordance with the international health procedures.

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Sounds like the Sudanese government is calling it "Severe Malaria" - symptoms similar to Ebola, including hemorrhagic fever. 

Good find, Kay, thank you.   I don't want to assume its Ebola, but its certainly a region with suspect  issues that is worth keeping an eye on. 
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Fever claims lives of three displaced in South Darfur Camp

http://www.radiodabanga.org/node/82899

Three women have died as a result of an unknown fever in Kalma camp, South Darfur. The North Darfur Ministry of Health has pledged to fill the gap of health services in the state by constructing health units in El Fasher.

The Secretary-General of the camp, east of Nyala city, reported the deaths of Aziza Ibrahim Bakaht, Maryam Mohamad Hamid, and the 11-year-old Jawahir Abdallah Hilal on Wednesday. Saleh Issa added that the symptoms of the disease are headache, severe fever, diarrhoea, and bleeding from the nose and mouth. He pointed out that many of the cases have been reported to the camp administration.

In June this year, Radio Dabanga reported that an unknown disease claimed the lives of 18 people living in Kalma during one month. The symptoms of this disease were a loss of appetite, headache, pain in the chest, diarrhoea, vomiting, and a high fever.

In North Darfur, the Federal Ministry of Health acknowledged that there is a lack of health services in the state. Under-Secretary Essam Mohamed Abdallah this week pledged to fill the gap over the next two years, by building family health units and centres. A fund of the Darfur Regional Authority would finance the construction, including new buildings at the El Fasher hospital. He also pledged to address the provision of equipment and other support to rural hospitals.

Very true, Onefluover.    Or, as in Sudan,  "Severe Malaria".

Posted from Kay's link above:

KADUGLI (5 Nov.)
About five cases of hemorrhagic fever have been reported in Kadulgli town in Sudan’s South Kordofan, according to medical sources.

A source told Radio Tamazuj that about five children were taken to Kadugli Hospital, amid a media blackout due to a visit by the First Vice President Bakri Hassan Selah to the town today.

The visiting vice-president was expected to inaugurate health facilities in the area. Meanwhile, security agents allegedly refused a transfer of one of the suffering children to El Obeid Hospital for treatment.

This comes after similar reports in October of patients suffering from high grade fever and epistaxis (bleeding from the nose) in an oil-producing area of neighboring West Kordofan State.

Emails obtained from PetroEnergy E&P say the company took “serious precautions” after Field Medical Officer Dr. Samir Alkhair Mohamed reported cases of “Ebola virus or hemorrhagic fever cases” at Fula hospital in West Kordofan.

“The two cases are now isolated and receiving treatment as hemorrhagic fever till further blood investigation confirm diagnosis about the type of hemorrhagic fiver,” another company official wrote.

Alkhair the medical officer also wrote, “Two cases died in Mujlad as a result of hemorrhagic fever,” without elaborating, according to the correspondence obtained by Radio Tamazuj.

UN and World Health Organization officials in Sudan contacted by email and phone for comment on 22 October either declined to respond to calls or said they were unable to comment due to lack of information.

On 24 October, however, an oil company official in West Kordofan told Radio Dabanga that two people died from bleeding and fever in Muglad and another two were hospitalized in Fula, reiterating the same information contained in the mentioned company emails.

The disease remains unknown.