Marburg Virus outbreak in Equatorial Guinea ends

On Jun 9, 2023

The outbreak of Marburg Virus Disease in Equatorial Guinea ended on Thursday, with no new cases reported over the past 42 days after the last patient was discharged from treatment. The outbreak, which was declared on February 13, was the first of its kind in Equatorial Guinea.

Marburg is in the same family as the virus that causes Ebola Virus Disease. The Marburg virus is transmitted to people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people, surfaces and materials.

A total of 17 laboratory-confirmed cases and 12 deaths were recorded. All the 23 probable cases reported died. Four patients recovered from the virus and have been enrolled in a survivors programme to receive psychosocial and other post-recovery support.

However, five districts in four of Equatorial Guinea’s eight provinces were affected. Bata district in the western Litoral province was worst-hit, with 11 laboratory-confirmed cases reported. Among the reported cases, many were closely linked either through social gatherings and networks, or geographically.

In Africa, the first outbreak of Marburg was recorded in South Africa in 1975, followed by two others in Kenya in the 1980s. Since then outbreaks have been reported in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Guinea and Uganda, and most recently Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania.

The World Health Organisation Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti said: “While outbreak-prone diseases continue to pose a major health threat in Africa, we can bank on the region’s growing expertise in health emergency response to act quickly and decisively to safeguard the health and avert widespread loss of life,

“The hard work by Equatorial Guinea’s health workers and support by partner organizations has been crucial in ending this outbreak. WHO continues to work with countries to improve measures to detect and respond effectively to disease outbreaks,” Dr Moeti added.

Also, the organisation worked with the health authorities to set up a treatment centre, provided medical supplies including antivirals and trained health workers in the key aspects of outbreak control. WHO also supported the efforts by the authorities in neighbouring Cameroon and Gabon to ramp up outbreak readiness and response.

WUMI/PUNCH