Mpox cases in Africa surpass 190,000, deaths near 2,000: Africa CDC
The number of mpox cases reported in Africa since the start of 2024 has exceeded 190,000, with deaths nearing 2,000, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said on Thursday evening.
Speaking at an online media briefing, Yap Boum II, deputy incident manager for mpox at the Africa CDC, said 29 mpox-affected African countries have reported 191,559 cases since January 2024, including 53,013 confirmed cases and 1,999 deaths.
Boum noted that response efforts are showing results, with both confirmed and suspected cases declining steadily in recent weeks compared to the peak around May. Weekly confirmed cases have dropped by 70 per cent, from 1,620 in May to 491 last week, alongside improvements in testing coverage, the Africa CDC said.
Meanwhile, the agency urged stronger community-based surveillance in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to help contain the latest Ebola outbreak in the country.
On Thursday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said at least 31 people have died in the latest Ebola outbreak in the DRC.
Patrick Otim, an official from the WHO Regional Office for Africa, told an online press briefing that 48 cases have been reported in the central province of Kasai, including 38 confirmed.
31 patients have died, while 15 remain under treatment at an Ebola centre in the Bulape health zone, the epicentre of the outbreak, and two have been discharged.
Boum emphasised the need to identify all suspected cases and effectively transfer them to treatment centres for isolation and appropriate care. He said the recent recovery of two Ebola patients was “very positive and encouraging news for the response.”
Ebola is a highly contagious hemorrhagic fever that causes a range of symptoms such as fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, generalised pain, and malaise, and in many cases, internal and external bleeding, according to the WHO.
