Symptoms of Marburg, a highly contagious disease similar to Ebola, are diarrhoea, fever, nausea and vomiting.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says two people who died later in Ghana tested positive for the Marburg virus, which causes a highly contagious disease similar to Ebola
Tests conducted in Ghana were positive, but those results need to be confirmed by a laboratory in Senegal for the cases to be considered confirmed, the WHO said in a statement on Thursday.
The two patients in the southern Ashanti region both had symptoms including diarrhea, fever, nausea and vomiting before dying in hospital, the statement said.
If the cases are confirmed, this would only be the second Marburg outbreak in West Africa. The very first case of the virus was detected in Guinea last year, with no other cases identified.
“Preparations for a possible response to the outbreak are being rapidly prepared as further investigations are ongoing,” WHO said.
There have been a dozen major Marburg eruptions since 1967, mostly in southern and eastern Africa.
Marburg virus is usually associated with exposure to caves or mines that house colonies of Rousettus bats. According to the WHO, once caught by a human, the virus is spread through contact with bodily fluids of infected people or with contaminated surfaces and materials.
The disease begins suddenly with a high fever, severe headache and malaise.
According to the WHO, death rates in previous outbreaks have ranged from 24 to 88 percent, depending on the virus strain and case management.
Although there are no approved vaccines or antiviral treatments, oral or intravenous rehydration and treatment of specific symptoms improve survival rates, it said.