Marburg virus disease (MVD)

News: An outbreak of Marburg virus disease (MVD) in Rwanda has resulted in at least 15 deaths and 66 reported infections.

About Marburg virus disease (MVD)

• It is a rare, severe viral hemorrhagic fever which affects both people and other primates, like apes and monkeys.
• It is often referred to as the “bleeding eye virus” and is one of the deadliest pathogens known to infect humans.
• It belongs to the same filovirus family as the virus that causes Ebola.
• Rousettus aegyptiacus, a fruit bat of the Pteropodidae family, is considered the natural host of Marburg virus.
• The World Health Organization has listed MVD as a major public health threat with no sufficient drugs or vaccines available.
• Causative agent– Marburg virus (MARV) and Ravn virus (RAVV) of the species Orthomarburgvirus marburgense.
• Initial outbreak: The first MVD outbreak was in Marburg, Germany, in 1967. Since then, most outbreaks have occurred in Africa, including recent ones in Tanzania, Ghana, and Rwanda.
• Transmission– The virus can be transmitted from bats to primates, including humans, and then spread through direct contact with blood or other body fluids from infected individuals.
• Symptoms: Early symptoms of Marburg disease include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, a rash with flat and raised bumps (often on the torso), chest pain, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. As the disease progresses, symptoms can worsen, leading to liver failure, delirium, shock, bleeding, and organ failure.
• Fatality-The average MVD case fatality rate is around 50%. Case fatality rates have varied from 24% to 88% in past outbreaks depending on virus strain and case management.
• Treatment– There is no specific treatment for Marburg hemorrhagic fever. Early supportive care with rehydration, symptomatic treatment improves survival.