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2023 Equatorial Guinea Marburg virus disease outbreak
Micrograph of Marburg viruses
Disease	Marburg virus
Location	Equatorial Guinea
Date	7 February 2023 – 8 June 2023
Confirmed cases	17
Suspected cases	28
Deaths	12 confirmed (20 suspected)
Fatality rate	71%
Suspected cases have not been confirmed by laboratory tests as being due to this strain, although some other strains may have been ruled out.

A disease outbreak was first reported in Equatorial Guinea on 7 February 2023 and, on 13 February 2023, it was identified as being Marburg virus disease. It was the first time the disease was detected in the country. As of 4 April 2023, there were 14 confirmed cases and 28 suspected cases, including ten confirmed deaths from the disease in Equatorial Guinea. On 8 June 2023, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak over. In total, 17 laboratory-confirmed cases and 12 deaths were recorded. All the 23 probable cases reportedly died. Four patients recovered from the virus and have been enrolled in a survivors programme to receive psychosocial and other post-recovery support.

Background

Marburg virus disease is a viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Marburg virus, with a case fatality ratio of up to 88 percent. Symptoms are similar to Ebola virus disease.

There are no vaccines or antiviral treatments for Marburg.

Outbreak

An outbreak of an unidentified illness was first reported on 7 February 2023 and linked to people who took part in a funeral ceremony in Kié-Ntem province's Nsok-Nsomo district. Eight deaths were reported by 10 February 2023, prompting a local lockdown, while Cameroon introduced border restrictions. Reported symptoms included nose bleeds, fever, joint pain and other ailments.

On 13 February 2023, the World Health Organization and Equatorial Guinea's health ministry announced that one of the samples sent to the Pasteur Institute laboratory in Senegal had tested positive for Marburg virus. At that time, there were 25 suspected cases, including 9 deaths. The condition of the confirmed case was not reported.

Neighbouring Cameroon detected two suspected cases of Marburg virus disease on 13 February 2023, but they were later ruled out.

On 25 February, a suspected case of Marburg was reported in the Spanish city of Valencia, however this case was subsequently discounted.

On 28 February, Equatoguinean Health Minister Mitoha Ondo'o Ayekaba reported that there had been two more deaths of people with symptoms of the disease.

On 4 April, it was reported that 10 confirmed deaths from the disease had occurred. It was also revealed that cases had been detected in four different districts of the country, including eight cases in the port city of Bata.

See also

• List of epidemics
• List of other Filoviridae outbreaks

References

1. ^ "Death Toll In E. Guinea Marburg Outbreak Rises To 11". Barron's. Archived from the original on 28 February 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
2. ^ Schnirring, Lisa (4 April 2023). "Equatorial Guinea confirms another Marburg virus case". University of Minnesota. CIDRAP. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
3. ^ "Equatorial Guinea declares outbreak of Ebola-like Marburg virus". BNO News. 13 February 2023. Archived from the original on 20 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
4. "WHO declares end to Marburg virus outbreak in Equatorial Guinea". France 24. 8 June 2023. Archived from the original on 6 November 2023. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
5. "Marburg Virus Disease outbreak in Equatorial Guinea ends". WHO | Regional Office for Africa. 2023-06-08. Archived from the original on 2023-08-01. Retrieved 2023-07-05.
6. ^ "Marburg (Marburg Virus Disease) | Marburg (Marburg Virus Disease) | CDC". www.cdc.gov. 8 August 2022. Archived from the original on 19 October 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
7. Atabong, Amindeh. "Equatorial Guinea quarantines 200 after unknown hemorrhagic fever deaths". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2023-02-23. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
8. "Equatorial Guinea confirms first-ever Marburg virus disease outbreak". World Health Organization. 13 February 2023. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
9. "Cameroon detects two suspected cases of Marburg virus near Eq. Guinea". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2023-02-21. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
10. "| By Ministère de la Santé Publique du Cameroun | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 2023-02-28. Retrieved 2023-02-28.
11. "Aislado un paciente en Valencia por sospechas de que padezca la grave fiebre de Marburgo". El País. 25 February 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-02-25. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
12. "Spain says patient does not have Marburg disease". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2023-02-27. Retrieved 28 February 2023.

Further reading

• Brauburger, Kristina; Hume, Adam J.; Mühlberger, Elke; Olejnik, Judith (1 October 2012). "Forty-five years of Marburg virus research". Viruses. 4 (10): 1878–1927. doi:10.3390/v4101878. ISSN 1999-4915. PMC 3497034. PMID 23202446.

• 2023 in Equatorial Guinea
• 2023 disease outbreaks
• February 2023 events in Africa
• Marburg virus outbreaks
• Disease outbreaks in Equatorial Guinea