CMO in Kagera for Marburg surveillance

KAGERA: THE newly appointed Chief Medical Officer, Dr Grace Magembe and her team arrived in Kagera Region on Thursday to make close follow-up on the reported Marburg Virus Disease after the country confirmed one case.

Dr Magembe held a closed meeting at the Kagera Regional Commissioner’s office and was yesterday (Friday) expected to visit Biharamulo District.

Speaking at the swearing in ceremony of four newly appointed Court of Appeal judges and the oath of integrity for senior officials at Chamwino State House in Dodoma on Wednesday, President Samia Suluhu Hassan directed Dr Magembe and her team to handle pandemic related matters with precision and efficiency.

“Grace, your role is crucial and requires great attention. You and your team must be firm to oversee pandemic-related matters in the country effectively.

You must avoid unnecessary alarms. I trust that you will carry out this responsibility competently and guide the country,” the President stressed.

On January19 this year, Tanzania confirmed an outbreak of Marburg virus disease in the northwestern Kagera region after one case tested positive for the virus, following investigations and laboratory analysis of suspected cases of the disease.

President Samia made the announcement during a press briefing alongside the World Health Organisation (WHO) Director General, Dr Tedros Adhanom in Dodoma.

“Laboratory tests conducted at Kabyaile Mobile Laboratory in Kagera Region’s Missenyi District and later confirmed in Dar es Salaam identified one patient as being infected with the Marburg virus.  Fortunately, the remaining suspected patients tested negative. We have demonstrated in the past our ability to contain a similar outbreak and are determined to do the same this time around,” the Head of State insisted.

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A total of 25 suspected cases have been reported as of 20 January 2025, all of whom have tested negative and are currently under close follow-up, the President said.

The cases have been reported in Biharamulo district in Kagera Region.

“We have resolved to reassure the general public in Tanzania and the international community as a whole, our collective determination to address the global health challenges, including the Marburg Virus Disease,” said President Samia.

Tanzania previously reported an outbreak of Marburg in March 2023 –the country’s first- in Kagera region, in which a total of 9 cases (eight confirmed and one probable) and 6 deaths were reported, with a case fatality ration of 67 per cent.

In the African region, previous outbreaks and sporadic cases have been reported in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.

WHO is supporting Tanzanian health authorities to enhance key outbreak control measures including disease surveillance, testing, treatment, infection prevention and control, case management, as well as increasing public awareness among communities to prevent further spread of the virus.

Marburg Virus Disease is highly virulent and causes haemorrhagic fever. It belongs to the same family as the virus that causes Ebola virus disease.

Illness caused by Marburg virus begins abruptly. Patients present with high fever, severe headache and severe malaise. They may develop severe haemorrhagic symptoms within seven days.

Marburg virus is transmitted to people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people, surfaces and materials.

Although several promising candidate medical countermeasures are currently undergoing clinical trials, there is no licensed treatment or vaccine for effective management or prevention of Marburg virus disease. However, early access to treatment and supportive care- rehydration with oral or intravenous fluids- and treatment of specific symptoms, improve survival.