Risk of Exposure

African fruit bats (Rousettus aegyptiacus) roosting inside a cave in Uganda.

People who have close contact with African fruit bats, humans patients, or non-human primates infected with Marburg virus are at risk.

Historically, the people at highest risk include family members and hospital staff who care for patients infected with Marburg virus and have not used proper barrier nursing techniques. Particular occupations, such as veterinarians and laboratory or quarantine facility workers who handle non-human primates from Africa, may also be at increased risk of exposure to Marburg virus.

Exposure risk can be higher for travelers visiting endemic regions in Africa, including Uganda and other parts of central Africa, and have contact with fruit bats, or enter caves or mines inhabited by fruit bats.