As a deadlier strain of the mpox virus, formerly known as monkeypox, spreads across Africa, the World Health Organization has declared the situation to be a "public health emergency of international concern."
The outbreak, which includes the more aggressive strain called clade lb, has infected 17,000 people in 13 countries across Africa since January, according to CNN. Of those infected, more than 500 people have died, which is a rate of around 3%.
In the mpox outbreak of 2022, the death rate was much lower at 0.2%, reports The New York Times.
"The detection and rapid spread of a new clade of mpox in eastern DRC, its detection in neighboring countries that had not previously reported mpox, and the potential for further spread within Africa and beyond is very worrying," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said today.
"The emergency committee met and advised me that the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice," he added.
From CNN:
Also known as a PHEIC, this is a status given by WHO to "extraordinary events" that pose a public health risk to other countries through the international spread of disease. These outbreaks may require a coordinated international response, according to the organization.
…The highest number of cases — more than 14,000 — is in the DRC, which reported 96% of confirmed cases this month.
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is a viral disease that can spread easily between people and from infected animals. It can spread through close contact such as touching, kissing or sex, as well as through contaminated materials like sheets, clothing and needles, according to WHO. Symptoms include a fever, a painful rash, headache, muscle and back pain, low energy and enlarged lymph nodes. …
No cases of clade I mpox have been identified in the United States, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, but it is monitoring the situation, and the US government has offered funding, assistance and vaccines to WHO and the DRC to support efforts in Africa.
The CDC recommended last week that people in the US who are exposed to or at high risk of catching mpox should get vaccinated.
Previously: World Health Organization renames monkeypox: it's now MPOX
