In a concerning detail, the World Health Organization (WHO), on Wednesday, announced a global health emergency related to the ongoing mpox disease in South Africa. This year, the number of deaths due to mpox disease in Africa has exceeded that of 2022 and thus turned into a global health emergency. According to the WHO, the mpox disease could transmit to other continents as well if not contained properly. The mpox disease has registered more than 17,000 cases and more than 500 deaths in Africa since the beginning of this year, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The mpox disease can easily be spread through close contact, either from humans to humans or from animals to humans.
According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, “The detection and rapid spread of a new clade of mpox in eastern DRC, its detection in neighboring countries that had not previously reported mpox and the potential for further spread within Africa and beyond are very worrying.” He further stated, “The emergency committee met and advised me that the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice.”
The committee chairperson, Chair Dimie Ogoina said, “It was unanimous that the current outbreak of mpox, upsurge of mpox, is an extraordinary event. What we have in Africa is the tip of the iceberg. … We are not recognizing, or we don’t have the full picture of, this burden of mpox.”
On the other hand, the WHO Director-General further stated, “But we are not dealing with one outbreak of one clade; we are dealing with several outbreaks of different clades in different countries with different modes of transmission and different levels of risk. It’s clear that a coordinated international response is essential to stop these outbreaks and save lives.”
The organization asserted that if we take right steps at the right time, then the spreading of this mpox disease can easily be contained without causing any further harm.
