Minister of Public Health Malachie Manaouda announced on Friday that the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has declared Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, a “public health emergency of continental concern.”

The declaration, effective since August 13, comes as the disease spreads across several African countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya.

For Minister Manaouda, the declaration calls for heightened vigilance in Cameroon, “especially since an active outbreak is currently affecting some border regions with the CAR, and we continue to record endemic cases in certain health districts of our country.”

Since the beginning of 2024, Cameroon has reported 30 suspected Mpox cases, with five confirmed cases and two deaths, according to official sources. Active outbreaks are primarily in the Southwest (districts of Mbonge, Buea and Limbe) and Northwest (districts of Njikwa and Bamenda) regions.

Cameroon, already endemic for Mpox, experiences annual outbreaks. The disease can spread from animals to humans, mainly through rodents, but human-to-human transmission is also possible. Transmission vectors include handling bushmeat, animal bites or scratches, bodily fluids, contaminated objects and close contact with infected individuals.

Symptoms begin with fever, headaches, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes and fatigue, followed by a rash that forms blisters and crusts.

The Ministry of Public Health has intensified efforts to contain and control the epidemic’s spread and prevent additional case importation, in collaboration with other government bodies and technical and financial partners. Manaouda said, “Epidemiological surveillance has been strengthened in high-risk areas, particularly in the epidemic regions and health districts bordering the CAR. Investigations and active case finding in the epidemic health districts are ongoing. Community awareness and mobilization activities have also been reinforced.”

Authorities recommend seeking immediate medical care for suspicious symptoms and adhering to strict hygiene precautions. These include regularly washing hands with clean running water and soap, “especially after handling an animal or animal product, caring for someone with monkeypox symptoms,” avoiding contact with bodily fluids and sick animals, and consuming well-cooked foods.

The World Health Organization (WHO) renamed the disease Mpox in 2022. On August 14, WHO declared Mpox a “public health emergency of international concern” due to its resurgence in the DRC and other African countries. This is WHO’s second alert regarding this disease, following the one from July 2022 to May 2023.

A new Mpox variant, named “clade 1b,” was detected in Sweden, marking the first detection outside the African continent. This variant, identified in September 2023 in the DRC, may be more transmissible and deadly than the previous one that triggered a 2022 outbreak, according to experts.

Cameroon has been battling the Mpox epidemic since 2022. Although vaccines for this infectious disease are not yet available in the country, Cameroon has managed to slow the virus’s spread through symptomatic treatment. As of Dec. 28, 2023, 113 suspected cases, including 18 confirmed and 3 deaths, had been reported in the country.

Source: Sbbc