The virus can be spread from person to person through direct contact or through the blood and other body fluids of an infected person.

Suspected outbreak marburg virus The World Health Organization (WHO) said at least eight people have died in Tanzania.

A total of nine suspected high-mortality cases have been reported in two districts in the country’s northwest Kagera region, the global health agency said in a statement on Tuesday.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on October 12: “As disease surveillance improves, we expect more cases to emerge in the coming days. “

The U.N. agency said Tanzania’s national laboratory had collected and tested samples from two patients to confirm the outbreak. The patient’s contacts, including healthcare workers, have been identified and are being traced.

The World Health Organization has warned that the risk of further spread in Tanzania and the region is “high” due to Kagera’s location at a transport hub, with significant cross-border movements to neighboring Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Global risks are currently assessed as “low”, it added.

The news comes just weeks after Rwanda declared the Marburg outbreak over. Infect At least 66 people died and 15 died.

This viral hemorrhagic fever, which has a mortality rate of up to 88%, belongs to the same virus family as Ebola, which is transmitted to humans by fruit bats.

The virus can be spread from person to person through direct contact or through the blood and other body fluids of an infected person, including contaminated bedding or clothing.

There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments for the virus.