Urgent meeting on Marburg virus by WHO today
The country of Equatorial Guinea is located in Central Africa. A former Spanish colony, it is made up of the islands of Bioko and Annobón and Rio Muni on the African mainland. Map from iStock
This story has been updated
Equatorial Guinea has confirmed its first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease after at least nine people died in the country’s Kie Ntem Province. The deaths were announced February 7 by the country’s Minister of Health and Social Security, Mitoha Ondo’o Ayekaba.
Equatorial Guinean health authorities then sent samples to the Institut Pasteur reference laboratory in Senegal with support from World Health Organization (WHO) to determine the cause of the disease.
Of the eight samples tested, one turned out positive for the virus. So far nine deaths and 16 suspected cases with symptoms including fever, fatigue and blood-stained vomit and diarrhoea have been reported.
“Marburg is highly infectious. Thanks to the rapid and decisive action by the Equatorial Guinean authorities in confirming the disease, emergency response can get to full steam quickly so that we save lives and halt the virus as soon as possible,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.
According to the WHO, the Marburg virus disease is highly contagious and causes haemorrhagic fever. It begins abruptly, with high fever, severe headache and severe malaise. Of every 100 people who contract the virus, 88 are likely to die.
The virus is transmitted to people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people, surfaces and materials.
Investigations are still going on to determine if all the deaths and the suspected cases are linked to the Marburg virus disease and to discover more cases.
While the investigations go on, Cameroon has been put on red alert for what was initially described as an “unknown disease,” given that the communities concerned border the Cameroonian towns of Ambam, Kye-Ossi and Olamze, all in Cameroon’s South Region.
Consequently, the Cameroon government has restricted movement along its border with Equatorial Guinea.
“In view of the high risk of importation of this disease and in order to detect and respond to any cases at an early stage, local administrative authorities have taken measures, including restricting movement at the Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea border,” the Cameroon Minister of Public Health, Dr Manaouda Malachie said in a statement, February 10.
He said his ministry was working collaboratively with experts from the World Health Organization and United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta as well as teams from Equatorial Guinea to “conduct multi-sector investigations” in the risk zones in terms of searching for cases and contact-tracing.
He said the team is also working to strengthen “epistemological surveillance” as well as intensify “awareness-raising and community mobilisation activities.”
The minister urged health workers to report and isolate any suspected cases, “in strict compliance with infection prevention and control measures.” He called on the population to comply with the measures prescribed by local health authorities, noting that the outbreak was neither a mystical phenomenon nor witchcraft but a disease that can and will be explained by science.
He further urged the population to call the toll-free number if they notice any suspected deaths in the risky localities, any person with haemorrhage from any natural orifice or any person presenting signs of weakness, headache or fever.
He advised the population to practice basic hygiene after “handling animal or animal product” as well as “taking care of a person with symptoms of hemorrhagic fever.”
In addition, the population needs to avoid contact with body fluids from sick persons, avoid contact with sick or dead animals as well as avoid unprotected sexual intercourse.
Meanwhile, Equatorial Guinea has taken measures to limit the spread of the disease.
Movement around the two villages where the outbreak was announced has been restricted and more than 200 people have been quarantined, even though they do not present any symptoms.
Minister Ayekaba said a Crisis Committee headed by the minister has been setup. The Committee has already set up “the first contingency and immediate response plan that includes the limitation of mobility to and between the affected districts and the reinforcement of local epidemiological surveillance services.”
He said advance teams have been deployed in the affected districts to trace contacts, isolate and provide medical care to people showing symptoms of the disease.
The WHO said the organisation was deploying “health emergency experts in epidemiology, case management, infection prevention, laboratory and risk communication to support the national response efforts and secure community collaboration in the outbreak control.”
He however said there was no cause for alarm, urging citizens to remain calm “and in the event that they present symptoms such as fever, weakness, vomiting blood and diarrhea, contact their community president by phone.”
“Likewise, we remind you that infection prevention measures must be maximised: avoid direct contact with people who present the symptoms described above, washing and disinfecting hands, correct use of a mask, correct cooking and disinfection of food and avoiding unnecessary crowds (festivities or family events included). At the same time, handling of corpses by non-medical personnel should be avoided,” Ayekaba said.
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