The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is urging travelers to Guinea and Tanzania to avoid contracting the deadly Marburg virus. The CDC is also sending staff to Africa to help stop the outbreak.
Marburg virus is an infectious disease with high mortality rates and, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), epidemic potential.
This week, the CDC announced that it is sending the National Center for Infectious and Zoonotic Diseases to respond to the outbreaks in Guinea and Tanzania.
Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania are experiencing the first known outbreaks of the Marburg virus. The CDC has equated the Marburg virus with Ebola. (Center for Disease Control)
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This week, the CDC urged travelers to Guinea and Tanzania to avoid contact with sick people, health facilities in outbreak areas, and to monitor for symptoms for three weeks after leaving the area.
Those traveling to Equatorial Guinea should take extra precautions and avoid non-essential travel to provinces where the epidemic is occurring, the Centers for Disease Control said. (Center for Disease Control)
In February, Equatorial Guinea announced the first outbreak of the virus and since then the country has officially counted nine cases with an additional 20 probable cases, all of whom have died, according to the WHO.
About 1,800 miles across the continent, Tanzania is also reporting and confirming a Marburg outbreak eight cases, including five deaths, according to WHO.
On March 21, 2023, Tanzania declared an outbreak of Marburg virus disease. Confirmed cases have been reported in Kagera region. (Center for Disease Control)
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The virus is a rare and fatal disease that causes fever, chills, muscle pain, rash, sore throat, diarrhea, weakness, or unexplained bleeding or bruising.
According to the CDC, the Marburg virus can be spread “through the blood or body fluids of a person who has been infected with or has died of Marburg.”
Marburg virus disease is a rare and deadly disease that has sometimes caused outbreaks in several African countries. (Center for Disease Control)
The virus is spread by contact with contaminated objects (such as clothing, bedding, needles and medical equipment) or by contact with animals such as bats.
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In 2018, in Queen Elizabeth National Park at Python Cave, CDC scientists led a project after tourists and nearby towns experienced outbreaks of the virus.
According to the CDC, health experts studied where bats go at night to better understand how the virus is transmitted to humans by placing GPS units on the bats’ backs to track their movements.
Sarah Rumpf is a staff writer for the breaking news team at Fox News Digital. You can reach him on Twitter at @rumpfsarahc