A “high” threat at the national and regional level but “low” at the international level: such is the assessment given by the World Health Organization (WHO) to the first case of Marburg virus disease recorded in Guinea.
This highly virulent disease causing hemorrhagic fever, severe headaches and possible malaise, belongs to the same family as the virus responsible for Ebola. The case was detected in the prefecture of Guéckédou, in southern Guinea, in a village located in a forest region close to the borders of Sierra Leone and Liberia. This is a man who died on August 2 and whose symptoms date back to July 25, according to the WHO.
“Marburg virus disease […] was detected less than two months after Guinea declared the end of the Ebola epidemic which had erupted at the beginning of the year ”, underlined the African office of the WHO.
Ongoing investigations to identify the source of the infection
“The investigation launched since August 4 around the case has not revealed a suspected case of Marburg fever. However, 155 contact cases have been listed and followed up daily ”, for its part indicated the Guinean government.
Three family members of the deceased patient and a healthcare worker have been identified as high-risk close contacts and their health is being monitored, while investigations are underway to identify the source of the infection and other contacts. of the “index case”, according to the WHO.
Marburg virus disease is transmitted to humans by fruit bats and is spread in humans through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected people, or with surfaces and materials. Previous outbreaks and sporadic cases have been reported in South Africa, Angola, Kenya, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo but this is the first time the virus has been detected in West Africa.
Although there are no approved vaccines or antiviral treatments to treat the virus, oral or intravenous rehydration and treatment of specific symptoms improve survival rates.