CDC to send troops to fight deadly Marburg virus in Africa

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To Catherine Donlevy

April 1, 2023 | 10:09 PM

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is sending personnel to Africa to quell an outbreak of a rare, deadly virus that has killed 12 people since February.

According to the World Health Organization, Marburg disease, a viral hemorrhagic fever, has not been reported in either Guinea or Tanzania, and cases have surged in recent weeks.

of CDC warns Marburg. is a “rare and fatal disease” that can be spread by contaminated objects and animals, such as fruit bats and primates.

Symptoms include fever, chills, headache, muscle pain, rash, sore throat, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach and chest pain, and unexplained bleeding or bruising.

“Marburg virus infections are often fatal. There are no approved vaccines or treatments for Marburg disease,” officials warn.

The agency has dispatched emerging and zoonotic disease centers to two regions on opposite sides of the country where the disease is spreading.

The CDC also plans to post notices at international airports warning of symptoms of the disease.

CDC has not enforced travel restrictions, but WHO has warned against “travel and trade restrictions” with Guinea or Tanzania.

Guinea was the first to report the disease FEBRUARY 7 — Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Health and Social Services said eight people had died on the same day in two separate villages.

The agency reported 20 probable cases and one additional death as of March 21.

Since March 16, Tanzania, on the other side of Africa, has reported eight cases, including five deaths in Marburg.

The first confirmed case in Tanzania brought the virus to his village after traveling from Godiva Island on Lake Victoria in another part of the country. WHO said.

It is unclear how Marburg entered either country.