Marburg virus: CDC asks doctors to look out for potential cases of a deadly Ebola-like disease

The CDC sent an alert to U.S. clinicians and public health departments about Marburg virus because of outbreaks in Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania.

Transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of the Marburg virus. Marburg virus, first recognized in 1967, causes a severe type of hemorrhagic fever, which affects humans, as well as non-human primates. Image courtesy CDC/Dr. Fred Murphy, Sylvia Whitfield, 1975. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images). (Smith Collection/Gado, Getty Images 2023)

Doctors in the U.S. should be on the lookout for cases of Marburg virus, a rare but deadly infection, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in an alert on Thursday.

Marburg belongs to the same family as Ebola; both diseases are viral hemorrhagic fevers — conditions that can cause internal bleeding and damage multiple organ systems.

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The CDC’s new health advisory, sent to clinicians and public health departments, came in response to recent Marburg outbreaks in Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania. Neither country had reported cases prior to this year.

For more, go to the full NBC News report.


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