Marburg virus disease outbreak
In news
- Five people have died and three others are infected with the Marburg virus – a highly infectious, Ebola-like disease – in Tanzania’s north-west Kagera region, authorities said earlier this week.
- According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 161 people have been identified as at risk of infection through contact tracing and are currently being monitored. An emergency response team has been deployed in the area and no other cases of the virus have been reported in the country outside Kagera, The Guardian said.
- “The efforts by Tanzania’s health authorities to establish the cause of the disease are a clear indication of the determination to effectively respond to the outbreak. We are working with the government to rapidly scale up control measures to halt the spread of the virus and end the outbreak as soon as possible,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, in a statement.
- The cases in Tanzania have come just over a month after another African country, Equatorial Guinea, reported its first case of the Marburg virus disease. Local authorities have confirmed seven deaths out of nine cases since 13 February, The Washington Post reported.
- “These emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases are a sign that the health security of the continent needs to be strengthened to cope with the disease threats,” said Ahmed Ogwell Ouma, the director of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). “We urge members of the public to continue sharing information in a timely manner with the authorities to enable a most effective response.”
Marburg virus disease
- The Marburg Virus disease is an infectious haemorrhagic fever. It belongs to same family as Ebola. The virus is transmitted to people via fruit bats. People to people transmission also takes place, if the uninfected person comes in direct contact with bodily fluids of infected person or surfaces. Marburg virus has an incubation period of 2-21 days. This disease is potentially very harmful and deadly. Fatality rates in previous outbreaks have ranged from 24% to 88%.
Previous outbreaks of the disease
- Earlier, Marburg Virus disease has been reported in Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya and South Africa. Single case was confirmed in Guinea, in September 2021.
Symptoms of Marburg virus disease
- Common symptoms of Marburg virus disease include- high fever, severe malaise, severe headache, Muscle aches and pains. Patient may also see severe watery diarrhoea, nausea & vomiting, abdominal pain & cramping on the third day following the contracting. These symptoms persist for a week.
Treatment of the disease
- No treatment or vaccine has been developed for Marburg, yet. Patients are treated through rehydration with oral or intravenous fluids.
Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs)
- VHFs are a group of diseases that are caused by several distinct families of viruses.
- The term “viral hemorrhagic fever” refers to a condition that affects many organ systems of the body, damages the overall cardiovascular system, and reduces the body’s ability to function on its own.
- Some VHFs cause mild illnesses, while others can cause severe, life-threatening diseases.
- Most VHFs have no known cure or vaccine.
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