01/09/2026
The current Ebola disease outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has disproportionately affected children.
In a commentary published in The Lancet today, MSF calls for urgent action from all stakeholders involved in research on Bundibugyo virus treatment and prevention to ensure that children are meaningfully included in planned, evidence-generating research on medical countermeasures, and, in particular, have timely access to paediatric formulations for ongoing trials of oral post-exposure prophylaxis.
Children and pregnant women are known to be at high risk of death from Ebola virus disease.1,2 In the current outbreak of Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the inequality in outcomes is particularly stark for children. As of Aug 4, 2026, of 1124 deaths among people with confi...