West Africa reports its first case of Marburg, an Ebola-like virus

On Monday, Guinea confirmed a case of Marburg virus disease — a highly infectious hemorrhagic fever similar to Ebola. This is the first case of the disease ever reported in West Africa.

“The potential for the Marburg virus to spread far and wide means we need to stop it in its tracks,” said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization’s regional director for Africa, in a press release.

The case was found in the country’s southern Gueckedou prefecture — the same region that experienced an Ebola outbreak earlier this year.

Rare but deadly: Fruit bats are the reservoir host of the virus, passing it along to humans who then transmit it through bodily fluids.

The disease kills about half of the people it infects, but case fatality has ranged from 24% to 88% in previous outbreaks, with factors such as the strain of the virus and the quality of case management playing a role.

Symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, aches, severe watery diarrhea, and vomiting. Bleeding can start from areas including the gums, nose, and vagina.

Other outbreaks on the African continent include those in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda. Between 2004 and 2005, Angola experienced the largest outbreak of the disease in history, claiming 329 lives out of 374 reported cases. The most recent outbreak was in 2017 in Uganda, which was quickly contained.

A lack of treatments: There are no vaccines or antiviral treatments approved for Marburg, but therapies are under development. Supportive care including rehydration through oral or intravenous fluids also helps save lives.

Health teams in Guinea are working to identify people who were in contact with the patient. According to WHO, cross-border surveillance with neighboring countries has also commenced. The incubation period for the disease is two to 21 days.

Update, Aug. 11, 2021: This article has been updated to reflect the number of fatalities in Angola’s outbreak of Marburg virus disease.