A suspected outbreak of the Marburg virus in northwest Tanzania has resulted in eight deaths and nine infections, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
This outbreak comes just weeks after a similar outbreak in neighboring Rwanda was declared over, which infected 66 people and killed 15.
The Marburg virus, which has a fatality rate as high as 88%, is a viral hemorrhagic fever from the same virus family as Ebola.
It is primarily transmitted to humans through fruit bats, which are common in East Africa.
Symptoms of the virus include headache, high fever, back pain, diarrhea, vomiting blood, muscle weakness, and external bleeding.
The WHO received reports of suspected cases in the Kagera region of Tanzania on January 10 and is awaiting test results from two patients to confirm the outbreak.
In the meantime, healthcare workers and contacts of the patients have been identified and are being monitored.
This is not the first time the Kagera region has dealt with a Marburg virus outbreak.
In March 2023, an outbreak in the same region killed six people and lasted for nearly two months.
