The highly infectious disease formerly called monkeypox has been declared a public health emergency in Africa after scientists expressed alarm at the rapid spread of a new strain of mpox.
The BBC reports that since the beginning of the year, more than 13,700 cases and 450 deaths have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The virus, which can cause lesions across the whole body, has spread to other African countries, including Burundi, the Central African Republic (CAR), Kenya, and Rwanda.
The speed of the spread of a new strain of the disease prompted scientists from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) to declare the emergency.
Last month, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported 20 confirmed mpox cases in South Africa between 8 May and 2 July 2024, including three deaths. These cases were reported in three of nine provinces: Gauteng (10 cases; 1 death), Western Cape (1 case), and KwaZulu-Natal (9 cases; 2 deaths). These are the first cases of mpox reported in South Africa since 2022 when the country had reported five cases, none of which were severe, and no deaths.
The BBC reports that the declaration of a public health emergency will help governments co-ordinate their response and potentially increase the flow of medical supplies and aid into affected areas.
Africa CDC head Jean Kaseya warned that the disease could spiral out of control if immediate steps were not taken to contain it.
Kaseya is quoted as saying: “This declaration is not merely a formality. It is a clarion call to action. It is a recognition that we can no longer afford to be reactive. We must be proactive and aggressive in our efforts to contain and eliminate this threat.”
Mpox spreads from animals to humans and between people through close contact with someone who is infected – including through sex, skin-to-skin contact, and talking or breathing close to another person.
It can cause symptoms such as fever, muscle aches, and lesions across the body. If left untreated, mpox can be deadly.
There are two main strains of the virus known to exist. The milder one caused the global outbreak in 2022 that affected Europe, Australia, the US, and many other countries – and was mainly spread through sexual contact.
The second more deadly strain, endemic in central Africa, is behind the new recently discovered variant in DR Congo.
There are three vaccines that exist but only people at risk or who have been in close contact with an infected person are usually able to have it.
Dr Kaseya said there were plans to secure about 10 million doses to limit the spread of the disease in Africa.
The WHO said of mpox in South Africa that the “risk to human health for the general public remains low”.
The WHO said the latest people affected by the disease “are men aged between 17 and 43 years old, and of the first 16 cases, 11 self-identified as men who have sex with men (MSM)”.
“At least 15 cases are living with HIV with unmanaged or only recently diagnosed HIV infection, and have advanced HIV disease (AHD), and one case has diabetes. The type of exposure contact reported by cases is sexual contact. Eighteen of the patients required hospitalization. Several response measures have been put in place by national health authorities with the support of WHO.
“The sudden appearance of these cases none of whom reported any history of international travel, the extremely high HIV prevalence among confirmed cases, and the high case-fatality ratio suggest that the confirmed cases are only a small proportion of all cases that might have occurred, and that community transmission is ongoing. The risk to human health for the general public remains low in the country.”
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