Mpox cases in Congo’s epicentre may be ‘plateauing’: WHO
Global News
WHO acknowledged that testing for mpox is still not widespread, making it difficult to understand how exactly the virus is spreading.
Cases of mpox in the region of Congo where a new and more infectious variant was first detected appear to be “plateauing,” the World Health Organization said on Monday, even as the virus continues to increase in other areas of the country, as well as in Burundi and Uganda.
A report by the U.N. health agency said the number of mpox infections “shows a general rising trend,” but that they may have plateaued in South Kivu, where the more infectious form of mpox was first identified to be spreading earlier this year among sex workers and miners in the gold mining town of Kamituga.
WHO acknowledged that testing is still not widespread, making it difficult to understand how exactly the virus is spreading.
According to data from last week, Congo reported fewer than 100 laboratory-confirmed mpox cases, down from nearly 400 in July. In recent weeks, experts say that infections appear to be stabilizing, offering a chance for health authorities to definitively stamp out the outbreak.
So far, about 50,000 people in Congo have been immunized against mpox. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 3 million vaccines are needed to stop the outbreak.
Last week, Africa CDC’s director Dr. Jean Kaseya said the continent was “still in the acute phase” of the mpox epidemic, with 19 countries affected. He warned that without more resources, the virus could become a global threat.
WHO said the Burundi outbreak is also being driven by the newer variant, which causes less severe symptoms — meaning people who are infectious may not realize they are spreading it. In the last two weeks, Burundi has reported more than 200 new mpox cases every week, mostly in children and young adults.
In Uganda, which reported 100 new cases last week, WHO said the virus is spreading mostly through sex, with the vast majority of cases in adults.
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