The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning travelers to take precautions and avoid nonessential travel in the African nations of Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania amid outbreaks of the deadly Marburg virus disease (MVD).
The CDC also says it’s sending personnel from its National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases to respond to the outbreaks.
Equatorial Guinea declared an outbreak of MVD on Feb. 13, and Tanzania declared an outbreak on March 21, the CDC noted.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has recorded at least nine confirmed cases in Equatorial Guinea and another 20 probable cases, all of whom have died as of March 25. In Tanzania, the WHO confirmed eight cases, five of whom have died, with the remaining three people undergoing treatments as of March 22.
People are being warned to avoid nonessential travel to the regions where the outbreak is occurring. In Equatorial Guinea, the provinces are Kie-Ntem, Centro Sur, and Litoral. In Tanzania, the Kagera region had confirmed cases.
Kenya and Uganda are on high alert due to the recent cases in Tanzania.
MVD is often fatal and is caused by the Marburg virus, which is in the same family as the virus that causes Ebola. According to the CDC, (pdf) as many as 9 out of 10 people infected with the virus will die without treatment.
www.zerohedge.com/medical/cdc-warns-about-deadly-marburg-virus-amid-outbreaks-africa