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LAST UPDATE | 15 Aug 2024
THE WORLD HEALTH Organisation (WHO) yesterday declared that an Mpox surge in Africa is a global public health emergency, sounding its highest possible alarm over the worsening situation.
Mpox has swept through the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the virus – formerly known as monkeypox – was first discovered in humans in 1970, and spread to other countries.
More than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths have been reported so far this year in DR Congo, already exceeding last year’s total.
Many of the Mpox cases reported in DR Congo involve children who became infected through contact with animals or an infected household member.
The WHO convened a meeting of experts to study the outbreak, and the group recommended that a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) be declared.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director general, accepted the recommendation, yesterday telling a press conference: “This is something that should concern us all.”
Strains of Mpox are known as ‘clades’.
The current outbreak in Africa is caused by clade I Mpox; this tends to result in a higher number of severe infections and has a higher mortality rate.
A new virus strain, clade Ib, has been detected in the east of the DRC and has also been confirmed in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.
Clade II Mpox caused the global outbreak in 2022, which led to more than 95,000 cases across 115 non-endemic countries including Ireland. The vast majority of people who contact clade II Mpox survive.
A case of clade I Mpox was today notified in Sweden which is understood to be the first confirmed case in Europe.
“The emergence of a new clade of Mpox, its rapid spread in eastern DRC, and the reporting of cases in several neighbouring countries are very worrying,” Tedros said yesterday.
“On top of outbreaks of other Mpox clades in DRC and other countries in Africa, it’s clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives.”
Mpox was previously declared a public health emergency in July 2022 after outbreaks of the virus in several countries, but this status was lifted in May 2023.
Mpox is an infection caused by the monkeypox virus. The infection has symptoms similar to smallpox, although less severe.
Mpox is a zoonosis, a disease that is transmitted from animals to humans, with cases often found close to tropical rainforests where there are animals that carry the virus.
However, clade II Mpox cases have been found in countries all over the world including Ireland.
Mpox can also spread from person to person through very close contact.
This can include:
Anyone can get Mpox but, during the outbreaks here in 2022 and 2023, most cases were among men who are gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men (gbMSM).
It usually takes between five and 21 days for the first symptoms to appear.
The rash usually appears one to five days after the first symptoms. Some people only have a rash.
The rash can start on your face, then spreads to other parts of your body. This can include your mouth, the palms of your hands and the soles of your feet.
If Mpox has been spread through sexual contact, the rash can appear around your bum or genitals. It may not spread.
The rash starts as raised spots, which turn into small blisters filled with fluid. These blisters eventually form scabs which later fall off.
If you think you have Mpox, you should contact your GP or an STI clinic for advice.
If you do have Mpox, you will need to self-isolate until your rash is completely healed.
Self-isolation means staying indoors and avoiding contact with other people. This includes the people you live with.
If you have Mpox, self-isolate until your rash has healed. Your GP can tell you when it is OK to stop self-isolating.
If you live with someone who is self-isolating, avoid face-to-face contact until they have finished self-isolating.
Mpox treatment involves relieving the symptoms, there is no specific medicine available to cure it. Most people recover in two to four weeks.
A vaccination programme for Mpox was introduced in Ireland in 2022 and was deemed a success, greatly reducing the number of confirmed cases.
Over 11,000 doses of the vaccine were delivered to around 5,000 people in 2022 and 2023.
More than 240 Mpox cases were reported in Ireland in 2022 and 2023 (the vast majority in 2022), but relatively few cases are now reported. Only six cases have been reported to date this year, including one last week.
In December 2023, the HSE paused the Mpox vaccination programme until further notice.
MPOWER – a programme run by HIV Ireland which aims to improve sexual wellbeing among gbMSM – previously called for the Mpox vaccine to be made available as part of routine vaccinations in sexual health services.
Following yesterday’s WHO declaration, the HSE told The Journal it “will consider the need for a new vaccine programme”.
The HSE’s spokesperson noted that no cases of clade I Mpox have been identified in Ireland to date.
“The HSE will be advised by the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) and by a risk assessment under preparation by the European Centre for Disease Prevention & Control (ECDC).
“The HSE will consider the need for any new vaccination programme and the particular groups potentially in scope for vaccination.”
The spokesperson added that Ireland has “sufficient supplies” of the Mpox vaccine “to meet any likely needs over the coming months”.
Contains reporting from © AFP 2024
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The NHS website on mpox states that it is usually a mild illness for most people and resolves by itself within a few weeks.
Is there a US election coming up and postal voting needs to be justified?
@Lewis Armstrong: absolutely.
@Lewis Armstrong: good grief. They don’t need to justify postal voting in the US, it’s allowed in 33 states as a right, and most of the rest under certain circumstances. They don’t need an epidemic or pandemic. I guess your post and all the likes it got, just goes to show how many stupid people there are out there. Who knew.
@Lewis Armstrong: The NHS is referring to Clade II from West Africa, which caused a global outbreak a few years ago. This outbreak involved a different strain, Clade I from centra Africa. It’s a much more severe disease.
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is a viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus, a member of the same viral family as smallpox. It was first discovered in 1958 in lab monkeys imported from Africa, however its natural host is more likely several species of rodents. The first human case was recorded in 1970 in a 9-month-old boy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This region eliminated smallpox just 2 year earlier, so Doctors were initially fearful it was the return of smallpox, but that was soon ruled out and identified monkeypox (mpox).
The virus is now endemic to parts of Central and West Africa, where it historically caused small sporadic outbreaks, but in May 2022 the virus spread outside West Africa for the first time, likely due to a mutation that increased its contagiousness. This was a much milder form of the disease.
There are two main clades of the virus:
1. Clade I, found primarily in Central Africa
2. Clade II, found in West Africa and responsible for the recent global outbreak [1].
Clade I mpox poses a threat due to its potential for sustained human-to-human transmission and its ability to cause severe illness, particularly in vulnerable populations, pregnant women and children.
Also, while the previous global outbreak that involved milder clade II primarily affected adult men who have sex with men, it had a fatality rate well below 1%, the DRC outbreak involving Clade I is much more virulent (severe) and predominantly affects children, with recent data showing that children under 15 years of age account for 66% of cases and 82% of deaths [2]. Clade 1 has a much higher case fatality rate than Clade II, of around 3.6%–4.9% (though there may be many undiagnosed cases, and if so, this might be an overestimate).
Also, the virus is of particular concern for pregnant women. Recent studies have shown alarming rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with Clade I. In an older study conducted in the DRC between 2007 and 2011 involving Clade I, 75% of pregnant women with mpox experienced miscarriage or stillbirth [3]. The current outbreak in South Kivu province, during 2023-present, confirmed these findings, with 50% of infected pregnant women experiencing fetal loss [4]. Additionally, the virus can infect both the placenta and fetus, causing congenital infection and disease in surviving newborns.
References:
[1] Bunge EM, Hoet B, Chen L, Lienert F, Weidenthaler H, Baer LR, Steffen R. The changing epidemiology of human monkeypox—A potential threat? A systematic review. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2022 Feb 11;16(2):e0010141. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0010141.
[2] World Health Organization. Disease Outbreak News. Mpox—Democratic Republic of the Congo. 14 June 2024. Available from: https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2024-DON522
[3] Mbala PK, Huggins JW, Riu-Rovira T, Ahuka SM, Mulembakani P, Rimoin AW, Martin JW, Muyembe JT. Maternal and Fetal Outcomes Among Pregnant Women With Human Monkeypox Infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo. J Infect Dis. 2017 Oct 17;216(7):824-828. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jix260.
[4] Schwartz DA. High Rates of Miscarriage and Stillbirth among Pregnant Women with Clade I Mpox (Monkeypox) Are Confirmed during 2023–2024 DR Congo Outbreak in South Kivu Province. Viruses. 2024; 16(7):1123. https://doi.org/10.3390/v16071123
@David Jordan: thank you for the information.
@Lewis Armstrong: cop yourself on. Sad that you think that this would prevent inperson voting. Or that the entire planet would conspire for the bloody US elections.
Close the schools, close the pubs, start up the PUP
Get off!!… love my commuter traffic and chicken fillet rolls more than a delicious lifestyle. lol we’re impossible
Should we not stop all travel from the infected countries before it gets here
@John Reynolds: it’s here. There were cases last year. Like covid it’s here forever and a day.
They should not be shagging tge monkies
@Sean Money: or the chim.pansies
@Mr “JonnieBoy” Johnson: or the feckin apes.
@Sean Money:
Monkey…Monkey! I’m a Gorilla you bloody ape!
We need vaccines. More vaccines. Quickly
@mickey mac: and this time no one is getting away
@mickey mac: Hopefully ones that work this time…
@mickey mac: Do you work for the UK government?
@pat kelly: vaccines do work extremely well, and save millions of lives every year
@mickey mac: the vaccine for this has existed for years. It’s the same one that totally wiped out smallpox and saved humanity from one of the most horrible diseases.
@mickey mac: Quick, close the pubs. Get in the toilet rolls. Self isolate. Restrict visits to hospital and care homes. Oh! Get the monkey jab.
@pat kelly: it is working for THEIR intended purposes….
I’ll wait for Bono’s opinion over The Who!
@Patrick MC Dermott: I never knew one had to wait for a Bono opinion. You learn something every day…..
“…most cases were among men who are gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men (gbMSM).” The last lot are still either gay or bisexual.
Bill gates didn’t predict this one..
CLOSE THE PUBS !
Tammany Hall Democrats, would teach FFG a thing or two!
@Brian Hunt: like what?
@pat kelly: Like how to manipulate elections!
Insert Michael Jackson popcorn GIF…
Woeful dose
@Fintan Pox: Pleased to meet you, I’m Eamon.
@Fintan Pox: I hope you’re not speaking from experience?
have your say