Uganda monitors Marburg
There are fears of the spread of Marburg, the deadly Ebola-like virus, in Uganda.
Uganda's ministry of health on Sunday said it is following up 55 people suspected to have had contact with the Marburg cases.
Jane Aceng, minister of health, told reporters that the number of Marburg cases remains three, with one confirmed case, one suspected and one probable case of the viral disease in the eastern district of Keen.
She assured the public that the country has the capacity to effectively handle the Marburg outbreak.
“The ministry of health therefore calls upon the population to remain calm but be on alert amidst this epidemic,” she said.
Uganda on 19 October confirmed the outbreak of the deadly Marburg haemorrhagic fever.
The last Marburg outbreak in Uganda was reported in central and western parts of the East African country in 2014.
Marburg is a severe and highly fatal disease caused by a virus from the same family as the one that causes Ebola haemorrhagic fever, according to the World Health Organisation.
According to the global health body, the illness caused by Marburg virus begins abruptly with severe headache and malaise.
Case fatality rates have varied greatly, from 25% in the initial laboratory-associated outbreak in 1967, to more than 80% in the Democratic Republic of the Congo over two years from 1998 to 2000, to even higher in the outbreak that began in Angola in late 2004.
NAMPA/XINHUA
Jane Aceng, minister of health, told reporters that the number of Marburg cases remains three, with one confirmed case, one suspected and one probable case of the viral disease in the eastern district of Keen.
She assured the public that the country has the capacity to effectively handle the Marburg outbreak.
“The ministry of health therefore calls upon the population to remain calm but be on alert amidst this epidemic,” she said.
Uganda on 19 October confirmed the outbreak of the deadly Marburg haemorrhagic fever.
The last Marburg outbreak in Uganda was reported in central and western parts of the East African country in 2014.
Marburg is a severe and highly fatal disease caused by a virus from the same family as the one that causes Ebola haemorrhagic fever, according to the World Health Organisation.
According to the global health body, the illness caused by Marburg virus begins abruptly with severe headache and malaise.
Case fatality rates have varied greatly, from 25% in the initial laboratory-associated outbreak in 1967, to more than 80% in the Democratic Republic of the Congo over two years from 1998 to 2000, to even higher in the outbreak that began in Angola in late 2004.
NAMPA/XINHUA
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