Cases of COPD are increasing in Africa, particularly around a new strain of the virus, more deadly and more transmissible, which is spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the UN World Health Agency (WHO) warned on Thursday, noting that the continent has seen an “unprecedented increase” in the number of cases since the beginning of the year, raising concerns among health authorities around the world.
In the DRC, the number of cases of MPOX, formerly called monkeypox, has reached more than 14,000 and 511 deaths.
According to the World Health Organization (OMS), fifteen African countries are currently reporting an outbreak of MPOX, with a total of 2,030 confirmed cases and 13 deaths since the start of the year, compared to 1,145 cases and seven deaths for the whole of 2023.
The disease has even spread to four countries neighboring the DRC that had not yet reported cases: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. While tests are underway in Burundi to determine whether the reported cases are due to a new strain, Nairobi, Kigali and Kampala have reported cases of this new variant that emerged in September 2023 in the eastern region of the DRC. This country accounts for more than 90% of the reported cases.
WHO convenes emergency committee meeting In response to this “unprecedented surge,” WHO has elevated the response to the outbreak to the highest level, requiring organization-wide mobilization and intensification. In addition, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called for an emergency expert committee meeting to determine whether the outbreak constitutes a public health emergency of international concern.
“The priority is to rapidly interrupt transmission of the virus. We are working with our partners to support countries to strengthen outbreak response measures and ensure that communities are at the heart of efforts to end them,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.
In the Great Lakes region and Southern Africa, the pattern of transmission varies across the region. In eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the spread of the new variant (known as clade 1b) is linked to transmission through sexual contact and significant population movements, while in South Africa, most cases are among people identified as men who have sex with men.
Better understanding transmission patterns to refine the response In West Africa and some Central African countries, transmission is associated with the 2022 global outbreak. However, WHO believes that further analysis is needed to better understand transmission patterns in order to refine the outbreak response.
On the ground, the UN agency is working with health authorities to facilitate access to treatment, decentralise laboratory services to improve diagnostic capacity and intensify efforts to raise awareness of the risk of the disease within communities.
In addition to close coordination to improve contact tracing, WHO aims to build on experience from previous outbreaks to ensure that interventions best support key populations and meet their needs.
The WHO Africa branch is already working closely with countries to develop their vaccination strategies and plans, in order to roll out vaccines as soon as they become available. Vaccines are one of the many public health tools used to combat MPOS.
The disease is transmitted from animals to humans and from humans to humans. Treatment of patients with MPOX depends on the symptoms. Various therapies that may be effective against the virus are being developed and tested. Prevention and control of the disease relies on community awareness and education of health workers to prevent infection and stop transmission.
Note that MPOX usually manifests itself as a skin rash or lesions of the mucous membranes that can last between two and four weeks, accompanied by fever, headaches, myalgia (muscle pain), back pain, marked asthenia (lack of energy) as well as swelling of the lymph nodes.
The disease is transmitted from animals to humans, with cases often occurring near tropical rainforests where animals carrying the virus live. It can also be transmitted from human to human through contact with bodily fluids, lesions on the skin or internal mucous membranes, such as the mouth or throat, respiratory droplets, and contaminated objects.
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