Ethiopia has confirmed its first Marburg Virus outbreak after reports began to circulate from last week. The reports showed cases of a viral hemorrhagic fever in the southern part of the country, as confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO). As of now, 16 cases have been identified in the region of Jinka city in the south, and 129 additional case contacts are being monitored. The Ethiopian Ministry of Health have also confirmed that three people have died "Genetic analysis by the Ethiopia Public Health Institute revealed that the virus is of the same strain as the one that has been reported in previous outbreaks in other countries in East Africa. A total of nine cases have been reported in the outbreak that has affected Jinka town in the South Ethiopia Region," the WHO said. What Is Marburg Virus?With the fatality rate of 8% it is the same virus family as Ebola. The main carrier is from fruit bats which spreads to humans then through the contact of bodily fluids of infected individuals, it spreads to others.As per the WHO, this virus is capable of killing half of the people it infects. This was for the first time detected in 1976 after 31 people were infected. Out of them, seven died in simultaneous outbreak in Marburg and Frankfurt in Germany, and in Belgrade in Serbia. The virus is also named after the location it was first detected.The source was traced to African green monkeys who were imported from Uganda. However, other animals too are linked to the virus spread, including bats.In the past, the virus outbreaks have happened in countries like Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Rwanda. In 2005, this virus killed 300 people in Angola.Last year in Rwanda, Marburg killed 15 people, and affected at least 66 people.Read: Marburg Virus Outbreak In Rwanda However, for the rest of the world, only two people have died from the virus in the rest of the world, with one of them being in Europe, and the other in the US. These both have been on expeditions to caves in Uganda.What Are The Common Signs And Symptoms Of Marburg Virus?The common signs and symptoms of the Marburg virus include fever, pain, diarrhoea, vomiting and in the case of extreme blood loss, death too can happen.So far, there is no specific treatment or vaccine for the virus. However, treatments like drugs and immune therapy are being developed as per the World Health Organisation (WHO).No Vaccine For MarburgWhile it may have the similar fatality rate, but unlike Ebola, there is no vaccine against Marburg. On X, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he commended Ethiopia for its "rapid and transparent response to the outbreak, and the work of the Ethiopia Public Health Institute and regional health authorities. This fast action demonstrates the seriousness of the country's commitment to bringing the outbreak under control quickly."
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