In the Mpanda district, in northern Burundi, a disease of still unknown origin has killed five people and affected 35 others. The World Health Organization announced the case, specifying that investigations are ongoing with the support of local partners.
Laboratory tests have already ruled out some of the most feared hypotheses: the results are negative for Ebola, Marburg virus, Rift Valley fever, yellow fever and Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever. The first cases date back to March 30 and mainly concern members of the same family unit and their closest contacts, an element which for the moment suggests limited transmission.
The symptoms of the disease that alarm experts
The clinical picture is worrying: patients present fever, vomiting, diarrhea and blood in the urine. In more severe cases, jaundice and anemia have also occurred. Medical teams are exploring several leads, including dengue and leptospirosis, trying to determine whether this is a known pathogen or something completely new.
A joint team of experts supported by the United Nations is operating in the field. Gavi, the organization that deals with access to vaccines in developing countries, is also involved in the investigations.
It is not the first time that Burundi has faced a similar situation. In 2023, an unidentified disease caused several rapid deaths in the north-west of the country without its origin ever being clarified. To further complicate the health situation, cholera continues to circulate in the country: over 3,500 cases were recorded in 2025 and transmission is still active in 2026.
