The World Health Organization on Wednesday declared mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years, following an outbreak of the viral infection in Democratic Republic of Congo that has spread to neighbouring countries.
An emergency committee met earlier on Wednesday to advise WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on whether the disease outbreak constitutes a “public health emergency of international concern,” or PHEIC.
PHEIC status is WHO’s highest level of alert and aims to accelerate research, funding and international public health measures and cooperation to contain a disease.
It has spread from Congo to neighbouring countries, including Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, triggering the action from the WHO.
Vaccines and behaviour change helped stop the spread when a different strain of mpox spread globally, primarily among men who have sex with men, and WHO declared an emergency in 2022.
For the second time in two years, the World Health Organization declared mpox a global public health emergency on Wednesday. This came about as a result of an outbreak of the virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that reached neighboring countries.
The WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus convened an emergency committee earlier on Wednesday to provide advice on whether the disease outbreak qualifies as a “public health emergency of international concern,” or PHEIC.
In order to contain a disease, PHEIC status—the highest level of alert recognized by the WHO—aims to expedite research, funding, and international collaboration and public health measures.
Tedros stated, “It’s obvious that a coordinated international response is essential to stop these outbreaks and save lives.”.
Through intimate contact, mpox can spread. Though usually mild, in rare instances, it can be fatal. Pus-filled lesions on the body and flu-like symptoms are caused by it.
The endemic strain known as clade I started to spread, which sparked the outbreak in the Congo. However, routine close contact, including sexual contact, seems to be a more effective way for clade Ib, a new variant, to spread.
It has spread from the Congo to its neighbors, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, leading the WHO to take action.
“The discovery and quick spread of a new clade of mpox in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as its detection in neighboring countries that had not previously reported mpox, are extremely concerning,” Tedros continued.
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According to Tedros, WHO has released $1.05 million in emergency funding and intends to release additional funds in the next few days. The WHO intends to make a fundraising appeal in order to raise the initial $15 million needed for its response plan.
After alerting authorities to the worrying rate at which the viral infection was spreading and citing over 17,000 suspected cases and over 500 deaths so far this year, mostly among children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Africa’s leading public health body declared an mpox emergency earlier this week.
The chair of WHO’s mpox emergency committee, Professor Dimie Ogoina, reported that all committee members were in agreement that the current wave of cases is a “extraordinary event,” with a record number of cases in Congo.
When an alternative strain of mpox spread throughout the world, mostly among men who have sex with men, vaccinations and behavioral modifications played a key role in halting the spread. The World Health Organization declared an emergency in 2022.
The WHO stated that more research is necessary to determine the transmission routes in the Congo.
There are currently no vaccines on the market, but work is being done to determine who would benefit from them most. Additionally, the organization urged nations that had vaccine stockpiles to donate vaccines.
(Reuters).
