WHO says no plague confirmed after Russian lab worker dies

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 11 Oct, 08:00 · Archive

The WHO has found no confirmed diagnosis for pneumonia that killed a Russian laboratory worker at a plague research institute in October.

A laboratory worker at Russia's Irkutsk Antiplague Research Institute in Siberia died on 2 October from pneumonia of unknown cause. The death prompted authorities to quarantine about 200 people. Russian media identified her as Darya Shipilova, a 28-year-old laboratory technician.

The World Health Organization said on Saturday that it does not know what caused the pneumonia. Russia's state health regulator reported that tests on the worker and those who had been in contact with her were negative for dangerous pathogens. Her contacts showed no symptoms, and no further linked cases of severe pneumonia had been found. Russian authorities said the worker was appropriately vaccinated and that post-mortem tests did not detect plague.

The WHO stated it had not identified evidence of ongoing transmission. However, initial unconfirmed reports had suggested a link to pneumonic plague, a severe lung infection caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. The WHO called for additional clinical, epidemiological and laboratory information, including confirmation of the diagnosis, to improve confidence in its assessment.

How it is being reported

• WHO issues update on investigation into Russian plague lab worker’s deathThe World Health Organisation says no case of plague has been registeredIndependent World · 11 Oct, 07:47
• WHO says no plague case registered after Russian lab worker’s deathThe WHO says the lack of a confirmed diagnosis remains a key uncertainty, with no sign of ongoing transmission.Al Jazeera · 10 Oct, 23:34

In this story: World Health Organization · Russia · Irkutsk Antiplague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East · Darya Shipilova · Irkutsk · Buryatia · Rospotrebnadzor

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem