Agile Ethiopian authorities they confirmed a Marburg virus outbreak in the south of the country, the African Union health agency (Africa CDC) announced on Saturday. The virus Marburgwhich causes a highly contagious hemorrhagic feveris transmitted by some species of bats and belongs to the same family as Ebola. His mortality rate can reach almost 90%.
At least nine cases of people infected with the Marburg virus have been identified inSouthern EthiopiaWHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday. WHO “is actively supporting Ethiopia in its efforts to contain the epidemic and treat infected people, and supports all efforts to prevent a potential cross-border diffusion“, he underlined on X. An alert regarding “a suspect viral hemorrhagic fever” was sent to the African CDC on November 12, which “noted the confirmation” yesterday “by the Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health and the Ethiopian Institute of Public Health of an outbreak of Marburg virus disease in Jinka, southern region.
The strain of the virus and preventive measures
“The virus present in Ethiopia is of a similar strain to those responsible for epidemics in other countries of theEast Africa“he said on Friday Ethiopian Ministry of Health on X. The ministry also indicated that it is conducting prevention efforts with other healthcare organizations, as well coordinated testing activities.
Previous epidemics and recent outbreaks
The Tanzania declared an end to a virus outbreak in mid-March that had claimed 10 lives since January. Kigali, for its part, declared the end of the first epidemic of this type that hit its territory at the end of December 2024, which had caused 15 deaths.
Current treatments and the search for a vaccine
Currently there is no vaccine o one approved antiviral treatment to fight the virus. However, the supportive care (oral or intravenous rehydration) and treatment of specific symptoms increase the probability of survival. Last year, the Rwanda tested a experimental vaccineprovided by the US-based Sabin Vaccine Institute.
