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The disease, which can cause victims to bleed to death, has appeared in Guinea in west Africa for the first time, prompting fears that the incident could escalate. Experts fear the Ebola-like illness, which is up to 88 percent fatal, and for which there is no know treatment or cure, could “spread far and wide”.
Health authorities in the country are now monitoring 155 people who may have been in contact with the confirmed case, the World Health Organisation said.
The patient died in Gueckedou in southeastern Guinea – also the location of the 2014-16 West Africa Ebola outbreak.
Georges Ki-Zerbo, the WHO country head in Guinea, said: “There is no known secondary case.
“The contacts have been traced, and 155 people are under observation for three weeks.
“It is active surveillance. The contacts are kept at home, isolated from other members of the family.
“They are visited every day to check on potential symptoms.”
The patient became symptomatic, and visited a small health clinic near his village on August 1.
Marburg and Ebola are closely related and transmission between humans is usually through contact with blood or other bodily fluids.
Guinea was declared free of Ebola two months ago, following an outbreak that killed 12 people.
Marburg fatality rates in past outbreaks have varied from 24 percent to 88 percent of those infected.
But Mr Ki-Zerbo said Guinea was better prepared to handle an outbreak than it had been when Ebola struck in 2014.
The discovery of the Marburg case also indicated improved ability to detect such infections.
Mr Ki-Zerbo added: “Guinea has built a robust health security system since the last Ebola outbreak in 2014 to 2016.”
He emphasised the use of rapid response teams, disease detectives, epidemiologists and social anthropologists, as well as better coordination with neighbouring countries.
He added: “Globally, the approach to combating Marburg would not be different from Ebola.
“The only difference is that there is no vaccine or drug specifically directed to the virus.
“Only supportive care is available.”
(More to follow)
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