Africa Sees "Historic" Marburg Outbreaks in Two Countries Simultaneously
Written By: Bartholomew Robbins
Photo by Denis Ngai on Pexels
Boston-For the first time ever, Africa is dealing with two separate outbreaks of the deadly Marburg Virus Disease at the same time.
Equatorial Guinea discovered its first-ever outbreak of Marburg had begun back in February after nine people were killed by the illness. As more cases were discovered, over two hundred people were quarantined and the country’s border with Cameroon was tightly restricted, as many of the cases occurred in villages close to it. Now, there are thousands of potential contacts who officials must follow up with to quell the spread of the illness.
Despite quick action, the situation is growing evermore worrisome. While the initial outbreak took place in rural areas, the hardest hit region is now the country’s second-largest city, Bata. Currently, there have been 15 confirmed cases and 23 probable cases. Of these, 11 of the 15 confirmed infected are dead, along with all of the probable cases. Many of these patients died within days of showing symptoms of infection.
The World Health Organization has expressed worry that the country is struggling to track and quarantine infected persons. This concern is not unwarranted; one of the confirmed case’s outcomes is unknown, as the government has lost track of the infected individual.
Across the continent, Tanzania is also dealing with a Marburg outbreak for the first time in the country’s history. The country’s Kagera region has seen eight cases, of which five have died. The government-with assistance from the WHO- is tracking over 130 potential contacts of the infected.
Other than the fact that infection seems to be increasing based on the new locations of confirmed infections, the primary concern remains the potential for cases that are unaccounted for or undiscovered, which could lead to further spread and additional outbreaks in other regions, countries, or even continents. The CDC has issued a general warning to healthcare workers and hospitals in the US, in the event the deadly illness reaches the shores of the United States.
Marburg Virus Disease (also known as MVD) was first observed in its namesake of Marburg, Germany when several Philipps University researchers became violently ill after interacting with lab monkeys imported from Uganda. Marburg was discovered nine years prior to Ebola. The illnesses were so similar that experts believed them to be the same illness at first.
Patients initially suffer from severe headaches and fever, with hemorrhagic symptoms appearing as soon as seven days after infection. Unlike Ebola, however, no vaccine for MVD currently exists, and treatments lead to recovery sporadically at best. The disease has a fatality rate of up to 88%.
The main carrier of the disease is the Egyptian Fruit Bat, an animal that is found in multiple countries across the African continent as well as in some parts of the Middle East. The disease is usually spread to humans through contact with fruit bats, though can sometimes be contracted from other species-such as monkeys-which have come into contact with a bat carrying the disease. The disease is then spread between humans through bodily fluids.