WHO confirms 8 new cases of Marburg disease in Equatorial Guinea

This file photo taken on March 30, 2021 shows the exterior view of the World Health Organization WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The World Health Organization said on Thursday that eight new confirmed cases of Marburg disease have been reported in Equatorial Guinea.

Since the outbreak of the deadly disease that was declared in February, the total of laboratory-confirmed cases has increased to nine and probable cases to 20. Twenty deaths have been reported.

Of the eight new cases, two were reported from the Central African country's Kie-Ntem province, four from the Litoral province and two from Centre-Sur province, the WHO said in a statement.

The WHO said that the areas reporting cases are about 150 kilometers apart, suggesting a wider spread of the disease.

WHO Africa Director Matshidiso Moeti said in the statement that the confirmation of these new cases is a critical signal to scale up response efforts to stop the chain of transmission.

Marburg virus disease is a viral haemorrhagic fever that can have a fatality rate of up to 88 percent, according to the WHO.

The symptoms include fever, fatigue and blood-stained vomit and diarrhoea. There are no vaccines or antiviral treatments approved to treat it.

READ MORE: Cameroon detects 2 suspected cases of the Marburg virus near Eq. Neighboring Cameroon also detected two suspected cases of Marburg disease last month despite limiting movement along the border to avoid contagion.