BRASSAVILLE, Republic of the Congo –
The World Health Organization has announced Ghana’s first outbreak of the Marburg Ebola-like disease, after laboratories confirmed infections in two cases announced earlier this month.
The disease, a highly infectious hemorrhagic fever from the same family as Ebola, is spread to humans by fruit bats and is transmitted between people through direct contact with infected people’s bodily fluids and surfaces, the WHO said.
A preliminary analysis of samples from two patients from the southern Ashanti region of Ghana – both deceased and unrelated – tested positive, but were forwarded for full confirmation to the Institut Pasteur in Dakar, Senegal. This UN health agency laboratory confirmed the results from the Noguchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research in Ghana, the WHO said in a statement on Sunday.
The first case was a 26-year-old man who was admitted to hospital on 26 June and died on 27 June. The second was a 51-year-old man who went to the hospital on June 28 and died the same day, the WHO said, adding that both sought treatment at the same hospital.
“Health authorities reacted quickly, starting to prepare for a possible outbreak,” said WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr Matshidiso Moeti. “This is good because without immediate and decisive action Marburg could easily spiral out of control.” WHO is on the ground supporting health authorities and now that the outbreak has been declared, we are directing more resources to the response.”
More than 90 contacts, including health workers and community members, have been identified and are being monitored, the WHO said.
Marburg is potentially very harmful and deadly: Mortality rates in past outbreaks have ranged from 24% to 88%.
This outbreak marks only the second time the disease has been detected in West Africa – after Guinea confirmed a single case found in August, according to the WHO. The Guinea outbreak was declared more than five weeks later.
Previous outbreaks of Marburg and isolated cases have occurred in Angola, Congo, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda, the WHO said.
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