What is Sudan virus and who should be concerned?

The Ugandan government and the World Health Organization recently confirmed an "outbreak" of Sudan virus disease.

The first (known) case of this outbreak is thought to be a 32-year-old nurse from a hospital in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.

Meanwhile, the WHO reported two main clusters, linked to the patient's family and a hospital cluster, foreign media write, according to Telegraph.

At the time of writing, the case is the only recorded death. The second case was the patient's wife, and as of February 11, there were nine confirmed cases.

According to foreign media, this new outbreak is the ninth to be recorded since 1976 when the virus was first identified and – as was the practice at the time – was named after the location where this first outbreak occurred, southern Sudan.

A 2022 outbreak of Sudan virus also in Uganda resulted in 164 cases and 77 deaths (a mortality rate of 47%).

As further noted, there are no treatments or vaccines against the Sudan virus.

But Sudan virus disease is essentially a disease very similar to Ebola.

It is the Ebola virus that has caused several outbreaks. The 2014-16 West African outbreak was the largest with 28,600 cases and 11,325 deaths.

Sudan and Ebola viruses come from the orthoebola virus family, but they have different proteins and genetic components, so the immune response to each virus is different.

As such, it is thought that Ebola vaccines will not be effective against the Sudan virus.

Thus, for the current Sudan virus outbreak, there are efforts to develop vaccine candidates and also monoclonal antibody drugs.

These drugs create antibodies that aim to stop the virus from reproducing.

Meanwhile, foreign media emphasize, according to Telegrafi, the similarities in structure between these two types of orthoebolavirus mean that the symptoms in patients are similar.

The illness for both viruses can typically begin with fever, aches and fatigue with possible progression to diarrhea, vomiting and unexplained bleeding.

Therefore, laboratory tests are necessary to differentiate between diseases, although the urgent need for isolation remains.

Also, early supportive treatment has been shown to reduce the mortality rate of Sudan virus disease and Ebola, giving the patient time for their body to recover.

This usually includes fluid replacement and treatment of pain, fever, and other possible infections.

As warned at the end, climate change will have an effect on the geographical distribution of new and emerging infections, such as Ebola virus disease and Sudan and Crimean-Congo virus.

Therefore, international cooperation to address global health threats is vital. /Telegraph/