Uganda has confirmed its first case of Marburg virus disease in 2026, marking a significant development in the country’s evolving public health crisis. The patient—an 18-month-old girl from Kyegegwa district in western Uganda—initially presented as a suspected Ebola case before laboratory confirmation revealed Marburg virus infection. This detection underscores the critical importance of differential diagnosis in outbreak response, particularly when managing multiple viral haemorrhagic fever threats simultaneously.
The case was identified through Uganda’s systematic testing protocol for all suspected viral haemorrhagic fever cases, demonstrating the nation’s robust laboratory surveillance capacity. Catherine Smallwood, incident manager for the WHO Ebola desk at the East Africa regional office, confirmed official notification on June 30, 2026. In response, the WHO has already begun deploying response teams across Uganda to support containment efforts while the country simultaneously manages the ongoing Ebola outbreak, creating a complex dual-response scenario for health authorities.
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