A US doctor with Ebola has been released from a German hospital after recovering from the deadly virus

A US doctor who contracted Ebola while working on a humanitarian mission in the Congo he was released from a hospital in Germany after recovering from a potentially life-threatening illness.

Dr. Peter Stafford was working with the Serge missionary group in the Congo when he contracted the virus, the group said. He was taken to a hospital in Berlin for treatment on May 20, according to the group. His wife, who is also a volunteer doctor with Serge, and their four children were also removed and placed in isolation.

Peter Stafford was treated at the Charité Hospital in Berlin, one of Europe’s top hospitals, where he received “antibiotic treatment and additional supportive measures during the first week,” the hospital said in a statement on Saturday. His condition has been improving during treatment, the hospital said.

“The viral load initially drops significantly under antiretroviral therapy and supportive care,” Charité said on Saturday. “Since May 30, no virus has been detected in the daily follow-up tests. In accordance with the internationally accepted criteria – the complete absence of symptoms for more than 72 hours and the detection of a negative virus in repeated PCR tests – the competent public health officer has proposed the isolation order today at 12:00 PM.”

While in detention, Stafford’s wife, Rebekah, and their four children have never had symptoms of Ebola, according to Charité. He was reunited with his five family members on Saturday.

“We are very pleased with the successful course of treatment and consider this a major therapeutic breakthrough,” said Leif Erik Sander, director of the Department of Infectious Diseases and Critical Care Medicine at Charité, in a statement. “On behalf of the entire team, we thank all the specialists who participated and the departments that made the successful treatment in the special isolation unit possible.”

I Bundibugyo ebolavirus The outbreak in Congo, which has spread to neighboring Uganda, is causing serious concern among health officials and may be larger than officially reported, they warned. The Bundibugyo strain is much less common than the Zaire strain of the virus and has been there are no vaccines or treatments.

There have been 452 confirmed cases and 82 deaths in Congo since Thursday, and 19 confirmed cases and two deaths in Uganda since Friday, according to the countries’ health ministers.

Stafford was exposed to the virus during surgery at Nyankunde Hospital in Bunia, a city in eastern Congo, Serge said earlier. He has worked at the hospital since 2023, according to the group.

“I received first-line care, including experimental drugs currently being tested for this virus,” Stafford said in a statement provided by Charité. “Words cannot express my gratitude enough. I thank everyone who made this possible. Our thoughts go out to the people of Congo who cannot receive such care.”

The third doctor working with Serge, Dr. Patrick LaRochelle, was also exposed while working at a Congolese hospital. The American was not seen and is in isolation at Bulovka Hospital in Prague, according to Serge’s last update on May 24.