CDC communicates with health authorities amid Marburg virus outbreak in Rwanda

Sept. 30 (UPI) -- The U.S.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday said it was in conversation with Rwandan health officials amid an outbreak of Marburg virus.

The central African country is dealing with 26 known cases of the deadly hemorrhagic fever similar to Ebola, of which six have so far become fatal, the CDC said in a statement.

Rwanda initially reported the cases of Marburg virus to the World Health Organization last week.

The country's health officials have detected cases in seven of Rwanda's 30 districts and are working to contain the outbreak.

"We're rapidly setting all the critical outbreak response aspects in motion to support Rwanda halt the spread of this virus swiftly and effectively," WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr. Matshidiso Moeti said in the agency's statement.

"With the country's already robust public health emergency response system, WHO is collaborating closely with the national authorities to provide the needed support to further enhance the ongoing efforts."

The CDC is sending subject matter experts to Rwanda to help the investigation and outbreak response.

U.S. officials said no cases of Marburg have been reported in the United States, and the anticipated risk to the general population remains low.

Symptoms include fever, chills, headaches and muscle aches, a torso rash and pain in the throat and chest.

There is no treatment or vaccine and patients can experience liver failure, delirium, shock, bleeding or hemorrhaging, multi-organ dysfunction and death as the disease progresses.

The mortality rate for those infected with Marburg virus is believed to be between 23% and 90%, according to the CDC.

Infected people can begin showing symptoms between two and 21 days after exposure. Those that recover from an infection are still able to transmit infection to healthy people in limited capacities.

Doctors often face challenges diagnosing the virus in patients because symptoms mirror those of other tropical diseases.

People at the greatest risk of contracting the virus are ones that have been in contact with Egyptian Rousette bats. The herbivores are found in parts of Africa, the Middle East, the Mediterranean and the Indian subcontinent, according to the National Institutes of Health.

"Marburg disease is spread from infected Egyptian Rousette Bats to people. The virus is found in the saliva, urine, and feces of infected bats. Once the disease has 'spilled over' from wildlife to people, those who are sick can spread the disease to other people," the CDC says in its description of the virus.