WHO considers convening emergency committee to deal with Mpox outbreaks

The Director General of the World Health Organization (OMS), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, is considering the option of convening an Emergency Committee due to recent outbreaks of mpox, formerly known as monkeypox.

This committee is made up of independent experts from around the world and is responsible for advising the WHO director on whether an infectious outbreak should be declared an international emergency.

There has been a significant increase in cases of MPOX in Africa in recent months, a situation that the Committee would assess to determine its severity and its possible impact on other countries on the continent and the rest of the world.

Mpox sprouts

It is worth remembering that mpox was declared a health emergency of international concern in July 2022 until May 2023, when it was considered to no longer be a threat.

However, he acknowledged that it has not yet been possible to establish whether the increase in reported cases reflects a real situation or whether it is due to the fact that countries in the region are more aware of this disease, have improved their health surveillance and are reporting cases more accurately.

In general, the mpox virus spreads mainly through direct or indirect contact with blood, body fluids, and lesions on the skin or mucous membranes of infected animals.

Secondary or person-to-person transmission can occur through close contact with infected respiratory secretions or skin lesions of an infected person, as well as through objects that have recently been in contact with the patient’s fluids or materials from the lesion.

Von Kerkhove recalled that there are vaccines approved as a preventive measure against MPOX and mentioned that work is being done to ensure that they are used primarily in the highest risk groups.

(With information from EFE)

Mpox outbreaks.

Debby leaves 5 dead in her passage through the United States