The reality is far from the prediction, WHO warns that the Marburg virus is spreading in many countries

Marburg is spreading fast

On March 24, the director of the World Health Organization (WHO) for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, said that the Marburg virus has now spread in three different areas within a range of more than 160km, indicating the possibility of transmission. wider transmission of the virus.

The latest country to record a case of Marburg virus is Tanzania. Previously, 9 people in Equatorial Guinea died from this virus. Cameroon detected 2 suspected cases.

The Tanzania National Public Health Laboratory analyzed the sample and identified eight positive cases, with symptoms of fever, vomiting, bleeding and kidney failure. Five of the eight cases have died, the remaining three are being treated.

“The efforts of the Tanzanian health authorities to identify the cause of the disease is a clear sign of the determination to respond effectively to the outbreak. We are working with the government to rapidly strengthen it. control, in order to prevent the spread of the virus and end the outbreak as soon as possible,” Moeti said.

WHO is assisting the Tanzanian Ministry of Health in deploying an emergency team to the city of Kagera for further epidemiological investigations. The emergency team will focus on actively searching for cases in the community and medical facilities to identify additional contacts and provide them with appropriate care.

What you need to know about the Marburg Virus

As reported, in Equatorial Guinea (Africa), there are 9 deaths and 16 suspected cases of Marburg Virus with symptoms of fever, fatigue, diarrhea, hemorrhage, multi-organ failure. This situation led the World Health Organization to issue warnings. So what is the Marburg virus? Is this virus contagious and what should be done to prevent it?

What is Marburg virus?

According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Do Duy Cuong – Director of the Center for Tropical Diseases, Bach Mai Hospital, the Marburg virus, the same family as the Ebola virus, has an RNA structure, is a virus with a natural reservoir, a species of fruit bat in Europe. Phi is Rousettus aegyptiacus. The name of the virus is taken from the Marburg laboratory in Germany – where this virus was discovered in 1967. Marburg virus causes sporadic disease in sub-Saharan countries such as Uganda, Equatorial Guinea, Congo, Angola … with a high mortality rate. High mortality can be up to 88%.

How is Marburg virus transmitted?

Humans inhale the secretions or urine of fruit bats will become infected, then spread from person to person.

Marburg virus spreads from person to person through close contact, body fluids, blood, urine, saliva, sweat, vomit secretions, milk, amniotic fluid, semen …

In addition, when some items of patient care such as clothes, bed sheets, needles, syringes, medical items … if infected with the virus, it can be transmitted to people. The Marburg virus can also spread in laboratories or healthcare workers caring for sick people.

There is no vaccine or specific antiviral drug to treat Marburg Virus

According to Assoc. Dr. Do Duy Cuong – Director of the Center for Tropical Diseases, Bach Mai Hospital: Marburg virus is usually transmitted by contact, can be transmitted through respiratory droplets, especially droplets when in very close contact.

Symptoms of Marburg virus infection: The disease caused by Marburg virus is difficult to diagnose clinically, clinical manifestations are easily confused with diseases circulating in that area. For example, in Africa, Ebola, yellow fever, typhoid, dengue fever, etc.

The incubation period lasts from 2-21 days. Onset of the patient may appear as: sudden fever, chills, headache, myalgia, body aches. On the 5th day may appear rash, burning sensation on the body. In addition, it is accompanied by nausea, chest pain, abdominal pain, sore throat, diarrhea, yellowing of the eyes, with hemorrhagic manifestations, delirium goes into shock and leads to liver failure, multi-organ failure, coagulopathy, and possibly liver failure. may cause death.

A definitive diagnosis of Marburg virus infection requires the use of laboratory tests such as ELISA and PCR. For dead patients, blood or biopsy samples can be taken from the body’s organs for immunohistochemical staining or growing plants to detect the virus.

Also according to Assoc.Prof.Dr. Do Duy Cuong, currently there is no vaccine or specific antiviral drug for treatment. People with Maruburg virus disease will have to be strictly isolated and the main treatment method is supportive treatment such as rehydration, anti-hemorrhagic, blood transfusion. multi-organ failure…. Despite the application of aggressive resuscitation measures, patients with the disease have a severe prognosis and high mortality rate.

How to prevent Marburg virus?

There is no vaccine for Marburg virus disease, so we need to prevent the disease by non-specific methods such as:

– Limit travel to areas at risk of infection.

– Avoid contact with fruit bats as well as with people suspected of having the disease.

– If you come into contact with a sick person or suspect that you have the disease, you need to wear labor protection (gloves, masks, disinfectant solution, disinfectant…).

Is the Marburg virus likely to spread to Vietnam?

According to Assoc. Prof. Cuong, in Vietnam, there have been no cases of Marburg virus, we need to be cautious but not too worried because the disease has only appeared sporadically and related to Africa, not yet. spread to other continents.

Moreover, Associate Professor Cuong also said that dangerous diseases are often transmitted through the respiratory tract because the virus will spread quickly. The Marburg virus can only be transmitted by close contact and causes region-specific disease. This is a dangerous epidemic disease but currently there are not enough factors to spread globally as well as to Vietnam.

People need to raise their vigilance and closely monitor the progress of the disease so that they can take measures to protect themselves to limit the risk of contracting the disease.