WHO Raises Alarm Over Marburg Virus Outbreak in Rwanda
The WHO has raised the alarm for a new worrying epidemic. This time, the focus of international concerns is the Marburg virus, which in recent days has hit Rwanda hard, where 26 cases of infection and 11 deaths have been confirmed. The outbreak, reported by Rwandan authorities on September 27, has primarily affected healthcare workers. Currently, 19 people are being treated in isolation, while over 290 contacts have been identified and traced by health authorities.
The disease, caused by the Marburg marburgvirus (MARV), is similar to Ebola and belongs to the same viral family, the Filoviridae. Symptoms include high fever, headache, fatigue, and in severe cases, mucosal and gastrointestinal hemorrhages. The mortality rate, although variable depending on the strain, can reach up to 90%. Fortunately, unlike other viruses, it requires direct contact with infected fluids or tissues to be transmitted and cannot pass from one host to another through the air. Transmission Modes Like Nipah, Marburg is primarily transmitted by animals.
In particular, human contagion generally begins following prolonged exposure to fruit bats, which are the natural reservoir of the virus. Touching, inhaling, or ingesting materials that have come into contact with the infected animal may be enough to pass the virus to the new host. As for human-to-human transmission, the risk of transmission increases significantly during the later stages of the disease when secretions begin to appear on the patient's body. This particularly endangers healthcare workers and family members assisting patients.
At the onset of the disease, Marburg diagnosis is difficult to distinguish from many other febrile illnesses due to the similarity of clinical symptoms: fever, sore throat, rash, abdominal pain, nosebleed, and in more severe cases, possible bleeding from the eyes. In the advanced stages of the disease, symptoms may include severe headaches and mucosal and gastrointestinal hemorrhages. Currently, there is no approved vaccine against Marburg disease, although some vaccine candidates are under trial. Epidemic containment measures are mainly based on quarantine and contact tracing, while experts emphasize the need for strict prevention and control to prevent wider spread.
In response to the emergency, the WHO has intensified support efforts and is collaborating with Rwandan authorities to contain the virus. Last Saturday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reiterated the importance of international cooperation to stop the contagion through the platform X (formerly Twitter). Additionally, on September 30, the WHO hosted a teleconference in Geneva to discuss possible vaccine and treatment trial strategies with Rwandan experts and members of the MARVAC consortium, a group of companies and organizations committed to developing therapeutic solutions for Marburg disease. Although most Marburg outbreaks have been rapidly contained so far, there is concern that if this one were to expand, the world could face a new global health emergency.
