Global Mpox Outbreak: WHO’s Declaration and US Preparedness

NEXTAR – The World Health Organization said that M.pox is spreading so rapidly in parts of Africa that it has created a global health emergency. For many people in America, the virus has not been on the mind for a few years, but is there new cause for concern?

Between the type of MPOX that was spreading globally in 2022 (including around the US) and the type of MPOX that prompted the new WHO announcement.

The WHO said there have been more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths in Africa so far this year, higher than last year’s figures. More than 96 percent of all cases and deaths are in a single country: the Democratic Republic of Congo.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that the strain of MPox circulating now (clade I) is more serious than the strain we saw two years ago (clade II). Clade I spreads more easily and can kill up to 10% of people it infects. On the other hand, more than 99 percent of those who caught the clade II version in 2022 survived.

Also, in previous MPox outbreaks, lesions were mostly seen on the chest, hands, and feet. The new form of mpox causes lesions on the genitals and mild symptoms. This may sound good at first, but it actually makes it harder to detect an infection, meaning people can make others sick without even knowing they are infected.

During the 2022 global outbreak of MPOX, gay and bisexual men accounted for the majority of cases and the virus was spread mostly through close contact, including sex. But with this outbreak in Congo, the majority of cases and deaths are children. The reasons for the difference are not entirely clear. Dr. Boghoma Titanji, an infectious disease specialist at Emory University, said this may be because children are more susceptible. Social factors, such as overcrowding and exposure to parents who have contracted the disease, may also be at play.

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Another important difference between now and 2022: According to the US Health and Human Services, no cases of Clade I mpox have yet been reported in the US.

The CDC believes the risk of Clade I mpox coming to the U.S. from the Congo is “extremely low” and says that even if the new strain does get here, our country is ill-equipped to combat its spread. All ready. The important thing is that we already have a vaccine that works.

Based on what we know, people in the United States who have already had mppox or received both doses of the mppox vaccine are likely to be protected from clade I mpox, ” writes the CDC.

Anyone who is eligible for the vaccine can get it now – no need to wait for the outbreak to spread further.

To prevent the spread of the deadly version of the virus, Congolese officials said they had asked for 4 million doses, the Associated Press reported, but had received none. The WHO announcement is intended to encourage other countries to donate vaccine doses and therapeutic drugs.

Clade II mpox is still spreading in the U.S., the CDC says, but in small clusters. Case counts have remained stable at around 250 per month.