Rwanda has announced it will begin a vaccine trial against the deadly Marburg virus, which has already killed at least 12 people in the country, most of them health workers.
The East African country has received 700 doses of the vaccine from the Sabin Vaccine Institute, a US-based nonprofit organization.
According to Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana, those most at risk will be targeted first for vaccines, including doctors and people who have been in contact with the Marburg patient.
This highly contagious disease is similar to Ebola, with symptoms including fever, muscle aches, diarrhea, vomiting and, in some cases, death due to extreme blood loss.
At least 46 people have been infected in Rwanda, according to the Ministry of Health. This is the first time the virus has been detected in Japan, and the source of infection is not yet known.
Nsanzimana said “people don’t need to worry” about health concerns about the vaccine as trials are already underway in Kenya and Uganda.
The Marburg vaccine has only been tested in adults over the age of 18, and there are currently no plans to test it in children.
The Health Minister said there are plans to order additional doses.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Marburg virus kills, on average, half of those infected. Previous outbreaks are known to have killed between 24% and 88% of those infected.
Rwandan authorities have restricted the size of funerals for virus victims in an effort to curb the spread of the virus.
Rwanda will also introduce travel restrictions in addition to temperature checks, passenger questionnaires and hand sanitizing at points of departure.
Marburg virus is transmitted from fruit bats to humans through contact with the body fluids of an infected person.
An outbreak was reported in neighboring Tanzania in 2023. Three people died in Uganda in 2017.
