The World Health Organization has increased its warnings regarding the spread of monkeypox in Africa, emphasizing the urgent need for action, while scientists separately warned of a dangerous strain spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Rosamund Lewis, the WHO’s technical lead for monkeypox, stated, "There is an urgent need to address the new rise in monkeypox cases in Africa."
In a separate press conference, John Claude Odahimuka from Rwanda, who is working on an outbreak in the hard-to-reach South Kivu region of Congo, said that the strain spreading there is a mutated version of the first generation of the virus that has been endemic in Congo for decades, and it is extremely dangerous. The mortality rates are around five percent in adults and ten percent in children. Chris Kaseta, the physician in charge of operations in the monkeypox control program in the country, reported last week that about 8,600 cases and 410 deaths have been reported this year in Congo.
Monkeypox is a viral infection that spreads through close contact and causes flu-like symptoms along with pus-filled sores. Most infections are mild, but the virus can lead to death. A different and less severe variant of the virus spread globally in 2022, largely through sexual contact among men who have sex with men, prompting the WHO to declare a public health emergency. Although that emergency has ended, Lewis stated on Tuesday that the disease still poses a health threat.
Vaccines and treatments are being used to combat the outbreak worldwide, but they are not available in Congo. The WHO and scientists have indicated that efforts continue to address this issue.
