Equatorial Guinea Confirms First Marburg Virus Case
Equatorial Guinea has confirmed the first Marburg virus case in the country. As additional investigations continue in the country, teams have been dispatched to affected areas to monitor and isolate contacts and provide medical care for those showing signs of the illness.
The Marburg virus case, which is stated to be a close relative of Ebola, was seen in Equatorial Guinea.
According to a written statement from the World Health Organization (WHO), viral hemorrhagic fever was positive in preliminary tests after at least 9 people died in Kie-Ntem province in the west of the country.
Following a warning from the district health official on February 7, health authorities in the country sent samples to the reference laboratory of the Pasteur Institute in Senegal, with WHO support, to determine the cause of the disease.
One out of 8 samples examined at the Pasteur Institute tested positive for the virus (Marburg), while 9 deaths and 16 suspected cases with symptoms such as fever, fatigue, bloody vomiting and diarrhea have been reported so far.
As additional investigations continue in the country, teams have been dispatched to affected areas to monitor and isolate contacts and provide medical care for those showing signs of the illness.
While the work continues for the rapid implementation of the emergency response in Equatorial Guinea, WHO supports this with the experts it has assigned in the region.
WHO will facilitate the shipment of viral hemorrhagic fever kits, including personal protective equipment for 500 healthcare workers, as well as laboratory glove tents for sample testing.
Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Director for Africa, said: “Marburg is highly contagious. As a result of the swift and determined actions of Equatorial Guinea authorities in confirming the disease, emergency response can be implemented quickly. This way we can save lives and stop the epidemic.” epidemic.” The virus as soon as possible.”
Cameroon announced on February 11 that it is restricting border crossings between the two countries due to an as-yet-unidentified disease that has caused a large number of deaths since February 8 in Kie-Ntem province of Equatorial Guinea.
WHAT IS MARBURG VIRUS, HOW IS IT TRANSMITTED, WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS?
Marburg virus, which is stated to be a close relative of Ebola, was first detected in a laboratory in Marburg, Germany in 1967.
Transmitted through fruit bats, Marburg virus spreads between humans through bodily fluids or contact of infected persons. In infected individuals, symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, malaise, and vomiting occur suddenly, and many patients develop severe hemorrhagic symptoms within 7 days.
The mortality rate of Marburg virus, which has no vaccine or special treatment, varies between 23 percent and 90 percent.
In the Marburg virus outbreak that occurred in Angola in 2005, 90 percent of the 252 people infected with the virus died.
Although the virus was found in a bat in the West African country of Sierra Leone in 2018, no cases have been recorded among humans.
