Ethiopia’s Ministry of Health has verified an outbreak of Marburg virus infection in the South Ethiopia Region, marking the country’s first recorded occurrence, after laboratory analysis of samples from a cluster of suspected viral haemorrhagic fever cases.

Genetic examination by the Ethiopia Public Health Institute showed that the virus belongs to the same lineage as the one detected in earlier outbreaks in other East African nations. A total of nine infections have been documented in the incident affecting Jinka town in the South Ethiopia Region.

National authorities are boosting response efforts, including community-wide screening, isolation of patients, treatment, contact tracking, and public sensitization campaigns to control the transmission of the Marburg virus, which is in the same family as the viruses that cause Ebola virus disease.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners are assisting the government as it steps up efforts to contain the virus and end the outbreak. A team of responders with expertise in viral haemorrhagic fever outbreak management has been deployed, along with medical supplies and equipment.

Marburg virus disease is a severe and often fatal illness caused by the Marburg virus. The disease is transmitted to humans from fruit bats and spreads among people through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals or contaminated materials.

Initial symptoms include high fever, severe headache, muscle aches and fatigue. Many patients develop severe bleeding within a week of onset. Although several promising candidate medical countermeasures are currently undergoing clinical trials, there is no licensed therapeutic or vaccine for effective management or prevention of Marburg virus disease. However, early access to supportive treatment and care – rehydration with oral or intravenous fluids – and treatment of specific symptoms, improve survival.

In the African region, previous outbreaks and sporadic cases have been reported in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda.