Health Ministry's Disease Prevention and Control Director General, Maxi Rein Rondonuwu, noted here, Wednesday, that health screening is being intensified by related authorities at seaport and airport facilities for visitors from infected countries.
The monitoring mechanism for this disease is similar to that for COVID-19 that involves detecting symptoms that travelers experience. Referral is then made through sample taking and examination.
Symptoms that arise due to being infected by the Marburg virus bear similarities to other diseases, such as malaria, typhus, and dengue fever, which are frequently found in Indonesia.
"We have already prepared the laboratory for sample test," he noted.
The ministry has already distributed a circular letter to all stakeholders, including regional governments, to be wary of Marburg importation.
The World Health Organization (WHO) received a case report about Marburg disease from Equatorial Guinea on February 13, 2023.
Based on the report, nine fatalities and 16 suspected cases were recorded in Kie Ntem Province. The symptoms experienced by patients comprised fever, fatigue, bloody vomit, and diarrhea.
From the nine samples examined, one was declared positive for the Marburg virus. The outbreak in Equatorial Guinea is estimated to have begun on February 7.
"To this day, no Marburg case was found in Indonesia," he remarked.
The Marburg virus (filovirus), with symptoms resembling dengue fever, is one of the deadliest viruses, with a fatality rate of 88 percent.
The virus falls in the same family as the Ebola virus. It is transmitted to humans through direct contact with infected humans or animals or contaminated objects.
Marburg is transmitted through bodily fluids directly from bats or primates.
Related news: Health Ministry ups vigilance against Marburg disease
Related news: MPR seeks improvement in early detection to prevent rare diseases
Translator: Andi Firdaus, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
