The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared mpox a global health emergency amid an outbreak of the virus triggered by a new strain, spreading to different parts of Africa and even beyond the continent.
Starting with Democratic Republic of Congo which accounts for almost 96 per cent of all cases in Africa, the new strain has been identified in countries that never reported any monkeypox cases before.
WHO has declared the current outbreak an 'international concern' as more than 17,000 cases of the deadlier strain of the virus have been found across the continent. Before WHO, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention had declared a public health emergency in the continent. Monkeypox was last declared a global health emergency in the year 2022.
Mpox is a zoonotic disease caused by Monkeypox virus belonging to the smallpox virus family and can spread by direct contact with an infected person or animal. As per CDC, the virus can make entry through broken skin, respiratory tract, eyes, nose, or mouth.
While the cases have been rising at an alarming rate in Democratic Republic of Congo, mainly due to Clade IB, the virus has raised alarm in 10 other African countries and even countries outside the continent.
The 13 African Union Member States with reported cases of mpox in 2024 are Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo (hereafter referred to as Congo), Côte d’Ivoire, DRC, Ghana, Liberia, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.
Country-wise confirmed mpox cases
Let's understand the country-wise confirmed cases of the new mpox strain
Mpox threat in African countries of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda
Burundi: The current variant that led to dramatic increase of mpox cases in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo, has caused around 100 cases in Burundi, according to the World Health Organization. Around 28 percent of these cases have been diagnosed in children under 5.
Mpox's current subvariant has also been found in Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.
Kenya: The country declared the Mpox outbreak on July 31 after one patient was diagnosed with mpox in Taveta subcounty, Taita Taveta county. Health officials say the patient has since been discharged from Taveta Sub-County Hospital.
“Cumulatively, 29 suspected cases have been identified. Of these, 23 have tested negative for Mpox, while six cases are pending confirmation from the reference Laboratory,” Public Health PS Mary Muthoni said.
Rwada and Uganda: Rwanda has reported their first mpox cases at the end of July 2024 and so far confirming four of them, while Uganda confirms two such cases.
Sweden
Sweden confirmed its first case of the new deadly mpox strain wherein a person became infected during a stay in an area of Africa, the country's public health agency confirmed.
PakistanA suspected case of mpox was reported in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). So far 4 people in the country are said to be affected. The 47-year-old patient, a resident of PoK recently returned to Pakistan from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and displaying symptoms of mpox.
PhilippinesPhilippines has recently made an entry into the list of mpox-affected countries this year. It has detected a new case of the mpox virus, the first since December last year. However, the test results will find out the nature of strain.
Also Read: Mpox Outbreak | Mpox Virus | Mpox Variants
Symptoms of mpox strain
Clade 1 usually causes symptoms like high fever, severe headache, myalgia and enlarged lymph nodes. The skin lesions are usually extensive and often can cause scarring of the affected regions whereas Clade 2 is associated with milder symptoms.
