EVEN BEFORE the horror of Covid-19 is completely gone, there is another deadly virus looming in the horizon. The World Health Organization has declared that mpox, formerly called monkeypox, is a global health threat. In 2022, spread of the virus, which causes rashes, fevers, muscle aches and other symptoms, led to the first emergency declaration. That version of the virus, called clade II, is causing a number of cases around the world, and presumably 2,000 infections have been recorded in the Philippines.
The mpox disease has spread rapidly in Africa. Congo, which has had a steady rise in cases over the past decade, has seen big increases for the past 2 years. Across Africa this year, there have been more than 15,600 cases and 537 deaths from mpox, including deaths of young children and people whose immune systems were weakened by HIV.
To make matters worse, a new version of the virus, known as clade Ib, emerged in Congo and has now been confirmed in neighboring countries. The variant appears to cause more severe cases and may be more transmissible than clade II, which caused the 2022 outbreak. That outbreak affected mostly men who have sex with men, though the virus also spread to others through contact with skin or infected clothing, bedding or other objects.
Clade Ib is spreading among adults through heterosexual sex, which may become a problem particularly for pregnant women. An infection could put them and their babies at risk.
Children have proven to be particularly vulnerable to the virus. And 87 percent of the deaths, or 321, have been among that age group. There is evidence that the virus is spreading in the community, while the other countries have so far reported isolated cases.
Vaccines and treatments will be deployed to help protect vulnerable people in some countries. Supplies of both are limited and experts warn that the full scope of the outbreak is not known. Increasing surveillance will be important to understand how the disease is spreading and who would benefit most from vaccination,
The 2022 mpox outbreak showed that getting the information out to affected communities and talking with them about ways to stay safe are also effective at containing an outbreak. There are a lot of interventions that can be utilized in a country and in communities to prevent transmission.
Scientists do not fully understand many things about the virus, including which animals serve as a reservoir for it and whether there is a real difference in the severity and transmissibility between the two clades circulating.
But one thing is clear. The world cannot afford to ignore the spread of the virus in Africa any longer. Mpox, originating in Africa, was neglected there, and later caused a global outbreak in 2022. It is time to act decisively to prevent history from repeating itself. Think and learn from the Covid-19 epidemic! By Manny Palomar, PhD (EV Mail September 16-22, 2024 issue)
