The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the mpox outbreak in some parts of Africa a public health emergency of international concern.
The highly contagious disease – formerly known as monkeypox – has killed at least 450 people during an initial outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
It has now spread across parts of central and east Africa, and scientists are concerned about how fast a new variant of the disease is spreading and its high fatality rate.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the potential for further spread within Africa and beyond “is very worrying”.
“A co-ordinated international response is essential to stop this outbreak and save lives,” he said.
Mpox is transmitted through close contact, such as sex, skin-to-skin contact and talking or breathing close to another person.
It causes flu-like symptoms, skin lesions and can be fatal, with four in 100 cases leading to death.
Outbreaks can be controlled by preventing infections with vaccines, though these are usually only available for people at risk or those who have been in close contact with an infected person.
There are two main types of mpox – Clade 1 and Clade 2.
A previous mpox public health emergency, declared in 2022, was caused by the relatively mild Clade 2. However, this time it is the far more deadly Clade 1 – which has killed up to 10% of those getting sick in previous outbreaks – that is surging.
Since the start of the year, there have been more than 13,700 cases of mpox in the DR Congo, with at least 450 deaths.
It has since been detected in other African countries – including Burundi, the Central African Republic, Kenya and Rwanda.
It is hoped the declaration of mpox as a public health emergency will lead to research, funding, and the introduction of other international public health measures being accelerated
Although anyone can catch monkeypox, the outbreak was largely concentrated among men who had sex with men.
That outbreak was brought under control by vaccinating vulnerable groups.
On Tuesday, scientists from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention declared a public health emergency.
The head of the organisation, Jean Kaseya, warned that this current outbreak could spiral out of control if immediate steps were not taken to contain it.
“We must be proactive and aggressive in our efforts to contain and eliminate this threat,” he said.
BBC
