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Reference ID U278TB3

Headline Uganda: Marburg virus disease, August 2007

Description Group photo of the Ecological Team including two survivors (left and fourth from right) of Marburg hemorrhagic fever, Serena Reeder (fifth from right) and Dr Pierre Rollin (third from left) both from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Dr Joseph Wamala (second from left), epidemiologist from the Ugandan Ministry of Health, Garry Smyth (fifth from left, in red), filmmaker with WHO, and Dr Nestor Ndayimirije (fourth from left) of WHO Regional Office for Africa.
Marburg virus disease (MVD), formerly known as Marburg haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often deadly illness. The Marburg virus is a close relative of Ebola, and the two zoonotic pathogens are clinically similar and lead to severe viral haemorrhagic fever in humans. Though rare, both diseases have the capacity to cause dramatic outbreaks with high fatality rates. There is as yet no proven treatment or vaccine available for MVD. In 2007, two cases of Marburg haemorrhagic fever were identified in a remote mining area in western Uganda. One, a miner, died in July. A public information campaign was launched along with training courses for local health workers. Concurrently, an international team of experts and scientists worked to identify the hosts of the virus and its mode of natural transmission in the environment. In their quest to locate the reservoir of the Marburg virus, team members explored Kitaka mine cave, where the outbreak appeared to have started. At a laboratory set up nearby, they examined bats that were captured in the mine. Working through the night, scientists searched blood and organ samples for Marburg virus antibodies. This photo story documents the joint efforts of WHO and its partners in the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) to monitor, investigate, and control the outbreak of Marburg fever in Uganda.
Title of WHO staff and officials reflects their respective positions at the time the photo was taken.

Asset date 08/21/2007

Country, area, WHO office Uganda

City Ibanda

WHO Region AFRO

Consent No

File size 1.95 MB

Visibility class:

Public

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