U.S. Delivers Marburg Vaccine to Rwanda Amid Outbreak

The United States has delivered an initial shipment of vaccines and drugs to Rwanda for tackling the Marburg disease outbreak. With 36 cases and 11 fatalities reported, Rwanda plans clinical trials for vaccines developed by Sabin Vaccine Institute. Additional doses may follow based on trial needs and government requests.

The United States has made a critical initial delivery of vaccine doses and therapeutic drugs to Rwanda, aiming to combat the outbreak of Marburg disease, as confirmed by Thierry Roels, U.S. CDC Country Director in Rwanda, to Reuters on Saturday.

Working closely with international partners and Rwanda's Ministry of Health, the U.S. government is prepared to support clinical trials to evaluate investigational treatments. While additional shipments are being considered, details on the quantity of the doses delivered remain undisclosed. So far, Rwanda has reported 36 cases and 11 deaths from this highly fatal viral hemorrhagic fever.

Efforts to combat the Marburg outbreak include testing experimental vaccines. The Sabin Vaccine Institute has supplied around 700 doses for trials focusing on frontline workers. Gilead Sciences also announced the donation of 5,000 vials of remdesivir for emergency use in response to the crisis. The Marburg virus, with a fatality rate of up to 88%, initially spreads to humans through fruit bats and further via contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals.

(With inputs from agencies.)