Doctors in Abu Dhabi reported that fever, severe headache, and muscle pain are the most prominent symptoms of the Marburg virus, stressing that the UAE health system has a high readiness to monitor and predict diseases, an effective response, and employs all the tools that enable it to respond quickly to combat diseases and infections, thanks to the keenness Leadership in developing policies and adopting best practices aimed at enhancing the health of community members and establishing a sustainable health system.
They pointed out that health facilities in the emirate have received, since last February, directives from the competent authorities to raise awareness of the procedures for controlling the “Marburg” virus, and infection control precautions in health care facilities, following the recent announcement by the World Health Organization that the State of Equatorial Guinea confirmed an outbreak of “Marburg” virus disease. (MVD).
Marburg virus, formerly known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever, is a highly contagious viral hemorrhagic fever that belongs to the same family as the Ebola virus disease. Although these two diseases are caused by different viruses, they are clinically similar. Both diseases are rare and have the potential to cause Epidemic outbreaks with high mortality rates.
Officials in health facilities (who preferred not to be named) stated that hospitals and all health professionals have directives since last February to be more vigilant in dealing with suspected or confirmed cases of Marburg virus infection, and to pay special attention to cases coming from West African countries and Equatorial Guinea. During the incubation period of the disease, immediate reporting of suspected or confirmed cases of Marburg virus infection.
Symptoms of the Marburg virus include fever, severe headache, and muscle pain, and this is often followed, after three days, by watery diarrhea, stomach pain, nausea, in addition to vomiting, as the features of patients at this stage are described by features drawn like ghosts, with eyes Sunken, expressionless faces with extreme lethargy.
According to the official website of the World Health Organization, Marburg virus disease may turn into an epidemic, and is associated with a high death rate, which may reach 88%, noting that it is difficult, in the early stage of infection, to distinguish by clinical diagnosis between Marburg virus disease and many other diseases. Other tropical febrile illnesses, because of the similarities in their clinical symptoms, all other viral hemorrhagic fevers, especially Ebola virus disease, as well as malaria, typhoid fever, leptospirosis, rickettsial infections and plague, need to be excluded.
The organization indicated that human infection with Marburg virus disease may result from prolonged presence in mines or caves inhabited by colonies of bats of the genus Rosetta, and Marburg virus is spread through human-to-human transmission through direct contact with the blood, secretions or any other liquids of an infected person. Excreted by the body (through cuts or mucous membranes), and contact with surfaces or materials (such as bed linen, clothing) contaminated with these fluids.
• Marburg virus is a highly contagious viral hemorrhagic fever that belongs to the Ebola family.
