The World Health Organization (WHO) held an “urgent meeting” on Tuesday regarding an outbreak of the Marburg virus, a deadly disease, in Africa. Marburg, which is related to Ebola, has a fatality rate of up to 88 percent. The virus has been detected in several African countries, including Equatorial Guinea, where nine deaths have been reported since January 7. WHO has sent “advance teams” to impacted districts in Equatorial Guinea to provide medical care and perform contact tracing. Cases of the virus are considered rare, with annual global figures released by WHO in the single digits. There is no specific treatment for Marburg hemorrhagic fever, and no vaccine. Symptoms usually appear five to ten days after infection, and can include fever, chills, headache, myalgia, a maculopapular rash, nausea, vomiting, chest pain, a sore throat, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. As the disease progresses, symptoms can become increasingly severe, including jaundice, inflammation of the pancreas, severe weight loss, delirium, shock, liver failure, massive hemorrhaging, and multi-organ dysfunction. In some cases, it can also cause bleeding from the eyes, gums, nose, and other areas.
WHO holds urgent meeting regarding Marburg virus, one of world’s deadliest.
