UNITED NATIONS, Sep 27 (IPS) – Yesterday, India’s Ministry of Health reported the first documented case of mpox in the country. An infected person is reported to have contracted the clade Ib strain of the virus, which is more lethal than the more common clade II. The incident has raised serious concerns among health officials around the world as the mpox epidemic was contained in the Democratic Republic of Congo until recently.
In August, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the emerging mpox epidemic “a global health emergency”. In the early stages of the epidemic, about 90 percent of all cases were reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the following weeks, cases were reported in neighboring states, including Kenya, Burundi and Rwanda. The virus had spread to non-African countries, such as Pakistan, Thailand and Sweden.
The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (ACDC) reported that cases have increased by 160 percent since last year, adding that most of these cases are from the deadly clade I variant. In addition, in the past few weeks, there has been a sharp rise in crimes in Kinshasa, the capital of Congo. According to the Ministry of Health of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa has seen only 525 cases since September 15. However, ten percent of those cases were reported in the last week of that test period, which indicates to analysts that the levels of infection. they are growing.
Although there have been few cases of the clade Ib strain detected, and deaths, outside of Congo, health officials around the world have implemented procedures to track the spread and isolate people infected with the virus. The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) called for continued vigilance regarding the epidemic, saying, “The magnitude of this outbreak may be greater than reported due to uncertainty and under-reporting”. The Congolese Ministry of Health estimates that only 20 percent of mpox cases are confirmed, most of which never seek treatment or have their symptoms removed like chickenpox.
Congolese health officials have long been advocating for a vigorous campaign to vaccinate against mpox, believing it to be vital to end this health problem. “Emerging disease outbreaks and the continued difficulty of controlling them using traditional public health approaches highlight a clear role for vaccines as part of a comprehensive response. The release of a robust, well-combined, mpox vaccine builds on lessons learned from COVID-19 and Ebola. The release of the vaccine, among for others, it is important,” said the WHO Regional Office for Africa.
On 13 September, the WHO approved its first approval of the mpox vaccine.
Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for Access to Medicines and Health Products, says, “WHO’s qualification of the MVA-BN vaccine will help accelerate the procurement of mpox vaccines by governments and international organizations such as Gavi and -Unicef to help communities at the forefront of ongoing emergencies in Africa and beyond.”
The MVA-BN vaccine is currently only licensed for people over 18 years of age who are not pregnant or immunocompromised. Patients are given two doses of injections, delivered four weeks apart.
The WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunization states that the off-label use of the MVA-BN vaccine in all patients may be permitted as the benefits of widespread vaccination far outweigh the potential risks. Research shows that one dose of the vaccine before infection boasts a 76 percent vaccination rate, while 2 doses produce an 86 percent vaccination rate. The WHO is currently on a mission to facilitate widespread vaccination and is appealing for donor contributions to scale up the program.
IPS UN Bureau Report
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