Monday, October 29, 2012

Marburg tests now done in Kabale

October 29  2012
By ROBERT MUHEREZA
Kabale
Testing of specimens from suspected Marburg victims has begun in Kabale District at the isolation centre set up at Rushoroza Health Centre III.
The district health officer, Dr Patrick Tusiime, yesterday confirmed the development, saying donors from the United States Centres for Disease Control are funding the programme .
“A field laboratory for testing samples from suspected victims has started operating. This will save us time and logistics that we have been spending to transport the samples to the Uganda Virus Research Institute in Entebbe,” Dr Tusiime said.
He said eight patients are currently admitted at the isolation centre in critical condition and the total number of people that got in close contact with the Marburg victims in Kabale district has increased from 198 to 204.
He said two more victims that died on Saturday in their homes have been buried under strict supervision of epidemic experts in Muko and Maziba sub-counties. “The relatives of the deceased said they were bleeding from the nose, were vomiting and had high body temperature,” he said.
Student nurses from the Kabale School of Comprehensive Nursing and Kabale Health Institute have been temporarily stopped from going to the wards at Kabale Regional Referral Hospital for nursing practice to reduce congestion of health workers at the ward that would result into the spread of the virus.
The Ministry of Health declared an outbreak of the Marburg virus in Kabale last week after five people were confirmed to have died of the disease. So far, seven people have died as a result.

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