The African Union health agency announced on Saturday that a total of 18,737 probable or confirmed cases of monkeypox have been recorded in Africa since the beginning of the year, including 1,200 cases in one week.
The census issued by the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which explained that many virus variants have been identified, indicated that there are 3,101 confirmed cases, 15,636 probable cases and 541 deaths reported in 12 countries on the continent.
According to the African agency, a greater number of cases have been recorded since the beginning of 2024 than in the entire year 2023 (14,838).
The same source indicated that the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is the epicenter of the epidemic, has witnessed almost all recorded cases, with 16,800 probable or confirmed cases.
More than 500 deaths have been recorded since the beginning of 2024.
Burundi, which borders the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has recorded 173 cases (39 confirmed and 134 probable), an increase of 75 percent in one week.
Africa is facing the spread of a new strain of monkeypox virus discovered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in September 2023, called Clade Ib, which is more deadly and more transmissible than previous strains.
Also, the first cases of monkeypox outside Africa were recorded this week, in Sweden and Pakistan.
The smallpox outbreak prompted the World Health Organization on Wednesday to declare it an international emergency, the highest level it can declare.
The WHO had issued a similar alert in 2022 when monkeypox strain 2 spread around the world. This alert was lifted in May 2023.
For its part, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared monkeypox a “public health emergency” on Tuesday, the highest level of alert.
Monkeypox is an infectious disease caused by a virus that is transmitted to humans by infected animals, but can also be transmitted between humans through close physical contact.
Strain 1 causes fever, muscle aches, and a rash, while previous strains cause a rash and localized sores on the mouth, face, or genitals.
The first human case of monkeypox was discovered in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
#Thousands #monkeypox #cases #detected #Africa #beginning #year