No confirmed cases of Marburg virus in Tanzania, says Africa CDC

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday that there are no confirmed cases of Marburg virus in Tanzania, despite reports on Tuesday by the World Health Organization indicating that suspected cases of the virus had been identified in the Kagera region.

The official communication from the government of Tanzania on Wednesday, according to the Africa CDC, said that there were no confirmed cases of Marburg virus based on the testing conducted by the government.

"We have already provided 200 test kits to Tanzania when we had the Marburg virus in Rwanda. We are going to provide a number of healthcare experts who are ready to be deployed in Tanzania," said Jean Kaseya, director general of Africa CDC.

WHO previously said they received reliable reports from the in-country sources about six people in Tanzania's Kagera region infected with the virus, with five fatalities reported as of Jan 10. On Jan 11, WHO said that nine suspected cases were reported across the districts of Biharamulo and Muleba, including eight deaths, in a case fatality ratio of 89 percent. "Samples from two patients have been collected and tested by the National Public Health Laboratory. Results are pending official confirmation," WHO said.

WHO has deployed a national rapid response team to support the outbreak investigation, while intensifying surveillance activities with ongoing contact tracing and laboratory testing. Human-to-human transmission of Marburg virus is primarily associated with direct contact with the blood and other bodily fluids of infected people. Several signs and symptoms include fever, headache, muscle pain, rash, body weakness, and internal hemorrhaging. The Bukoba district in Kagera region experienced its first Marburg virus outbreak in March 2023, and zoonotic reservoirs, such as fruit bats, remain endemic to the area. The outbreak lasted for nearly two months with nine cases including six deaths.