First-Ever Suspected Cases Of Marburg Virus Disease Reported In Ghana
In Ghana, the preliminary report findings of two cases of the Marburg virus disease have been announced, which, if confirmed, would be the first of such infectious recorded in the country.
The Marburg virus is a highly infectious viral hemorrhagic fever which is in the same family as the better-known Ebola virus disease.
The preliminary analysis of samples that had taken from two patients by Ghana’s Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research had indicated that they were positive for Marburg.
However, per standard procedure, the samples had been sent to the Institut Pasteur in Senegal, a World Health Organisation (WHO) collaborating center for further confirmation. The two patients who were from the southern Ashanti region, both deceased and unrelated, had showed symptoms which included diarrhoea, fever, nausea and vomiting. They had then been transferred to a district hospital within the Ashanti region.
As further investigations are conducted, preparations for possible response to the outbreak of the disease are being conducted.
According to Dr. Francis Kasolo, World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative in Ghana, “Health authorities are on the ground investigating the situation and preparing for a possible response to the outbreak. We are working closely with the country to increase screening, contact tracing and be prepared to control the spread of the virus.”
Read Also:
WHO is currently deploying experts to support the Ghanaian health authorities by strengthening disease surveillance, testing, contact tracing, preparing to treat patients, as well as working with communities to alert and educate them about the risks and dangers of disease and collaborate with emergency response teams.
If it is confirmed, the recent cases in Ghana would mark it as the second time that the Marburg virus has been detected in West Africa. Guinea had confirmed a single case in an outbreak that was declared over on the 16th of September, 2021, five weeks after the initial case was detected. Previous outbreaks and sporadic cases of the Marburg virus in Africa have been reported in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, South Africa, and Uganda.
The Marburg virus is transmitted to people by fruit bats and spreads between humans through direct contact with bodily fluids from infected people, surfaces, and materials. The illness begins abruptly, with a high fever, severe headache, and malaise. Many patients will develop signs of severe bleeding within seven days. The case fatality rates have ranged from 24% to 88% in previous outbreaks, depending on the virus strain and case management.
Although there are no approved vaccines or antiviral treatments that can be used to treat the virus, supportive care (rehydration with oral or intravenous fluids) as well as treatment of specific symptoms can improve the survival rate. A range of potential treatments are currently being evaluated, including blood products, immunotherapies, and pharmacotherapies.
