The deadly and extremely contagious type of mpox that is spreading throughout the continent has forced the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) to declare a public health emergency. The action may have been intended to prevent the virus that causes monkeypox from developing into an epidemic that spreads throughout the continent and beyond.
“We declare mpox as a public health emergency of continental security,” stated Jean Kaseya, the director of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), during an online media briefing on Tuesday. “I declare with a heavy heart but with an unwavering commitment to our people, to our African citizens.”
As of August 4, 2022, there had been 1,456 mpox deaths and 38,465 cases across Africa, according to CDC data.
“Mpox has now spread across borders, affecting thousands of people throughout our continent. Families have been shattered, and the suffering and pain have reached every region of our continent,” he stated.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is where the cases have been proliferating at an especially concerning rate. Clade Ib subclade is the strain that started the current outbreak.
Health officials are concerned because cases that were previously limited to the Democratic Republic of the Congo are quickly spreading to Kenya and other African nations. This year, ten African nations have reported cases of mpox, including Rwanda and Burundi, which both reported mpox viral cases for the first time.
The World Health Organisation states that this extremely pathogenic strain seriously endangers people’s health.
All About Mpox
Direct contact with an infected person or animal can transfer the smallpox virus, which causes monkeypox, a zoonotic illness. The CDC states that the virus can enter the body through the mouth, nose, eyes, respiratory system, or broken skin.
What’s the new mpox variant spreading in Africa?
Clade 1b is the name of the new strain, which is more adept at spreading among individuals and carries new mutations that are missed by current testing.
The mpox virus is known to belong to two clades: clade I, formerly known as the Congo Basin clade, and clade II, sometimes known as the West Africa clade. Clade II also contains two subclades, known as clade IIa and clade IIb.
It’s currently unknown how harmful and transmissible the clade Ib virus is, as well as whether its symptoms differ from those of the clade II virus that triggered the 2022 outbreak, according to a Nature report.
Clade I mpox is known to have a greater fatality rate than clade II mpox, but the exact cause is unknown, according to Espoir Bwenge Malembaka, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the Catholic University of Bukavu, who spoke with Nature.
