Bleeding eye disease kills eight after outbreak in new country
Share:
WHO sounds alarm after deadly Marburg virus kills 8 people in key east African transport hub. Eight people have died in Tanzania’s Kagera region following a suspected outbreak of the Marburg virus disease, according to the World Health Organization. The virus, related to Ebola and frequently fatal, is sometimes known as the bleeding eye disease because it damages the patient’s blood vessels, causing them to bleed from various orifices including their eyes.
![[WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus addresses a press conference on the Marburg virus outbreak]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/16/04/2024-12-27T225140Z_923280950_RC2DOAADROF1_RTRMADP_3_ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-YEMEN-WHO.jpg)
As of 11 January, a total of nine cases had been recorded, including among healthcare workers, across the districts of Biharamulo and Muleba. Authorities are working to trace the source of the outbreak and identify additional cases. Samples taken from two patients have been tested by the National Public Health Laboratory and the results are pending official confirmation, WHO said.
The Kagera region, which first experienced an outbreak in March 2023, is an important transport hub in East Africa and poses a high regional risk for the disease, WHO warned. The previous outbreak lasted about two months with nine cases and six deaths.
Neighbouring countries Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, and Congo could potentially face crossborder spread. At least 66 people were infected and 15 died from the Marburg virus disease in Rwanda last year, according to its health ministry. In spite of the regional threat, global risk remains low as the virus does not spread easily between people, WHO said.
