The World Health Organization (WHO) called on Equatorial Guinea on Wednesday to report cases of the Marburg virus to it due to fears of more widespread contamination than announced.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the UN organization clarified that there have been nine cases officially announced by Equatorial Guinea, with seven deaths.
These cases relate to three provinces, separated by some 150 kilometers, “suggesting wider transmission of the virus”, he said. “WHO is aware of additional cases and we have asked the government to officially report these cases to WHO,” added the boss of the organization.
On March 22, the WHO announced that it was aware of 20 cases. “probably” caused by this haemorrhagic fever, all of whom died. According to Incident Manager Abdi Mahamud, there are “signs of widespread transmission that we (concern)”. The occurrence of these cases “is more widespread and might occur in several provinces”, he added.
“More than the count of the number of cases, it is regarding the geographical extent”, according to this WHO official. Marburg virus is a very dangerous pathogen that causes high fever often accompanied by bleeding affecting multiple organs and reducing the body’s ability to function properly.
It is part of the filovirus family, to which the Ebola virus also belongs, which has already caused several deadly epidemics in Africa. According to Michael Ryan, director of emergencies at the WHO, states have clear international obligations in terms of managing health crises.
“When we are in the midst of an outbreak, and we have new and significant information, especially related to laboratory-confirmed cases of dangerous pathogens, people need to be aware, alerted and able to take action.” , he said. Any delay in providing such information hampers the response process, he said.
The natural host of the Marburg virus is an African fruit bat, which carries it but does not become ill. Animals can transmit it to primates living near them, including humans. Intra-human transmission then takes place through contact with blood or other bodily fluids.