Tanzania reports first-ever Marburg virus epidemic, five dead.

The World Health Organization reports that Tanzania has identified eight cases of Marburg, a high-death highly contagious fever with symptoms that are often similar to those of Ebola (WHO).

The World Health Organization announced late Tuesday that the national public laboratory in Tanzania had confirmed the diagnosis after five persons in the northwest Kagera region died after showing symptoms such as fever, vomiting, bleeding, and kidney failure.

A health worker was among the fatalities, according to WHO. The 161 contacts of the three survivors were being watched as they received treatment.

As stated by Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, “Tanzania’s health officials’ attempts to determine the etiology of the disease are indeed a clear indicator of the desire to successfully respond to the outbreak.

Marburg, which is spread to humans by fruit bats and has a fatality rate as high as 88 percent, belongs to the same virus family as Ebola and then spreads by coming into contact with the bodily fluids of those who have the infection.

According to the WHO, the symptoms often appear seven days after infection and include a high temperature, a strong headache, and fatigue. In order to stop the spread of the virus, “we are collaborating with the authorities to quickly scale up control measures.”

The outbreak in Tanzania occurs a month after Equatorial Guinea also reported its first-ever epidemic of the Marburg virus sickness. The WHO stepped up surveillance in the country of Central Africa and sent out professionals in epidemiology, case management, infection control, laboratory work, and risk communication to help the country respond.