The World Health Organization (WHO) has today declared the spread of Monkey Pox (mpox) in multiple African countries a public health emergency of international concern, the second such declaration in the past two years called in response to transmission of the virus.
The latest decision came on the recommendation of a panel of experts convened to advise WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on the issue. It also follows a similar declaration Tuesday by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
This could potentially occasion new phase of global containment measures and travel advisories and quarantining of patients reminiscent of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic that ravaged the world between March 202 to late 2021.
This follows an outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has spread to neighboring countries in Africa.
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, can spread through close contact. Usually mild, it is fatal in rare cases. It causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body.
Determining that a disease outbreak is a “public health emergency of international concern” or PHEIC — the WHO’s highest level of alert — can accelerate research, funding and international public health measures and co-operation to contain the disease.
The outbreak in Congo began with the spread of an endemic strain, known as clade I.
But a new variant, clade Ib, appears to spread more easily through routine close contact, including sexual contact.
It has spread from Congo to neighboring countries, including Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, triggering the action from the WHO.
“It’s clear that a coordinated international response is essential to stop these outbreaks and save lives,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Earlier this week, Africa’s top public health body declared mpox an emergency after warning that the viral infection was spreading at an alarming rate.
More than 17,000 suspected mpox cases and 517 deaths have been reported on the African continent so far this year, a 160% increase compared to the same period last year, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. A total of 13 countries have reported cases.
A different form of the mpox virus — clade IIb — spread globally in 2022, largely through sexual contact among men who have sex with men.
That prompted the WHO to declare a public health emergency at the time, which it ended 10 months later.
In the U.S., cases of clade IIb have declined considerably since their peak in 2022.
However, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked doctors last week to be on alert for mpox among people with characteristic symptoms who have recently been in the Democratic Republic of Congo or its bordering countries.
The agency noted that no cases of clade I have been reported outside central and eastern Africa but warned about the risk of further transmission.
A vaccine for mpox is commercially available in the U.S., but not generally available in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The CDC recommends that people who are exposed to mpox — or who belong to groups with an elevated risk of infection, such as men who have sex with men — receive two doses of the vaccine.
It is effective against both clades of mpox
