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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