Ugandan officials have confirmed the death of two people from Marburg virus in the eastern part of the country.
This is the first of such outbreak which is similar to the deadly Ebola virus which wreaked havoc in some African countries.
Uganda’s senior health ministry official Dr. Diana Atwine is quoted as saying that “Blood samples were taken from two people who have since died and were found positive for Marburg”
The outbreak was recorded in an area close to the border town between Kenya and Uganda.
The health official said “At moment we don’t know if there are other people apart from the dead who have contracted the disease because the health experts are still investigating in addition to sensitising the population about the dangers of Marburg and we call for public vigilance”.
All the deaths occurred between September 25 and October 11.
The health minister of Uganda, Ruth Achieng also said that one of the victims who is a lady “had taken care of her brother during his sickness and burial preparation rituals when we suspect she contracted the disease.”
The Marburg virus is one of the most deadly known pathogens and like Ebola, it is a haemorrhagic fever which causes severe bleeding, fever, vomiting and diarrhoea. It has a 21-day incubation period.
Uganda recorded Marburg first in 2007 in the western district of Kamwenge but in 2012 a similar outbreak killed 10 people. The last outbreak was in 2014 leading to one death.
Source: Africafeeds.com
