He Health Alerts and Emergencies Coordination Center (CCAES) of the Ministry of Health is carrying out a “review of early detection and case management actions” in the face of the Marburg virus outbreak in Equatorial Guinea.
This is stated in the ‘Disease situation report by Marburg virus in Equatorial Guinea’ of the CCAES, dated February 14 and to which Europa Press has had access.
This Monday, the health authorities of Equatorial Guinea and the World Health Organization (WHO) have reported an outbreak of Marburg virus disease in the African country. The outbreak was detected after the identification of 9 deceased with hemorrhagic symptoms in the Nsok Nsomo district.
As of February 12, 16 suspected cases have been registered and more than 4,300 people are under quarantine in the districts of Nsok Nsomo, Ebibeyin (Kie Ntem province) and Mongomo (Wele Nzas province). After sending 8 samples to the Pasteur Institute in Senegal, the detection of the Marburg virus has been confirmed in one of them.
contingency plan
The health authorities of the African country have activated the contingency plan iIncluding movement restrictions in the affected areas and actions to search for cases and follow up on contacts, among others.
Meanwhile, the WHO has announced that it is supporting the national response of Equatorial Guinea with the displacement of experts for case management, infection prevention, laboratory analysis, material supply and risk communication.
This is the first time that the Marburg virus, which is similar to Ebola both in symptoms and in mode of transmission and mortality, has been detected in Equatorial Guinea.
In Africa, there have been previous outbreaks and sporadic cases in Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kenya, South Africa and Uganda. Guinea confirmed a case in August 2021 in Gueckedou, while Ghana confirmed two cases in July 2022.
This virus is transmitted to people by fruit bats and spreads between humans through direct contact with bodily fluids from infected people, surfaces and materials.
no vaccines
The illness starts sharp, with high fever, intense headache and general malaise, which can evolve into severe bleeding symptoms. The lethality oscillates around 50 percent.
There are no approved vaccines or antiviral treatments. However, supportive treatment (oral or intravenous rehydration) and symptomatic treatment improve survival.
This Tuesday, the Ministry of Foreign AffairsEuropean Union and Cooperation has updated its travel recommendations to Equatorial Guinea for alert the Spanish who plan to move to this country of the existence of the outbreak.
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foreign has recommended to the Spaniards that they “remain vigilant and follow the communications made by the Equatoguinean authorities regarding health and movements”.
For now, the health alert declared by the Equatorial Guinean Government in the province of Kie Ntem and in the district of Mongomo, in the province of Wele Nzas, both in the continental part of the country, includes a restriction of movement from/to the affected area for 45 days and the closure of the border crossing with Cameroon.