The Kigali Ministry of Health announced on Sunday that the source of Marburg virus infection has been found in Rwanda, and the disease could spread from flying dogs to humans.
We were able to trace the outbreak and prove that a zoonotic disease (transmitted from animals to humans) occurred.
This was announced by Health Minister Sabine Nsazimina at a press conference in Kigali.
As he said, it is possible that the injuries can be traced back to a cave where flying dogs live and where there is a mine near it. According to Nsazimina, this is where workers may have come into contact with infected animals, from which the virus was transmitted to humans.
Nearly 90 percent mortality rate
The virus, which is similar to the Ebola virus and named after the German city of Marburg, was discovered in 1967 after it was introduced to Marburg with experimental monkeys intended for research. The virus spreads through close contact through bodily fluids of infected people or through infected surfaces such as bedding. The incubation period for infection is 2-21 days, and in the absence of treatment or medical care
It can be fatal in up to 88 percent of cases.
The Marburg epidemic recently spread in Rwanda. An outbreak of hemorrhagic fever was reported on September 27. By October 26, a total of 65 infected people had been recorded, of whom 15 had died.
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