Mpox outbreak in Central Africa

 https://www.nytimes.com/card/2024/08/29/world/africa/mpox-outbreak-africa-congo

CDC discussion 

since january 1, 2024, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reported more than 31,000 suspect mpox cases and nearly 1,000 deaths. 

There have also been confirmed clade I cases in Central African Republic (CAR), which borders DRC to the north. Clade I mpox occurs regularly in ROC and CAR, but the new cases appear to be linked to spread from DRC. 

In late July 2024, the disease spread to countries that are not known to be endemic for the virus that causes mpox: Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda, which sit on the eastern border of DRC, and Kenya, which has reported cases of travel-associated mpox only. Although contact tracing is ongoing, some cases have links to DRC. Person-to-person transmission has occurred during this outbreak, including through sexual contact, household contact, and within healthcare settings, when personal protective equipment was not available.

CDC is working with Ministries of Health and in-country partners across the region on disease surveillance, laboratory capacity including testing materials, strengthening workforce capacity, case investigation, case management, infection prevention and control, border health, and risk communication and community engagement.

In some provinces, patients have acquired infection through contact with infected dead or live wild animals, household spread, or patient care (transmitted when appropriate PPE wasn't used or available); a high proportion of cases have been reported in children younger than 15 years of age.

 

In other provinces, the cases are associated with sexual contact among men who have sex with men and female sex workers and their contacts. These are the first reported cases of sexual transmission with clade I mpox.

more here

The Republic of the Congo (ROC), which borders DRC to the west, declared a clade I mpox outbreak in April 2024. There have also been confirmed clade I cases in Central African Republic (CAR), which borders DRC to the north. Clade I mpox occurs regularly in ROC and CAR, but the new cases appear to be linked to spread from DRC. In late July 2024, the disease spread to countries that are not known to be endemic for the virus that causes mpox: Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda, which sit on the eastern border of DRC, and Kenya, which has reported cases of travel-associated mpox only. Although contact tracing is ongoing, some cases have links to DRC. Person-to-person transmission has occurred during this outbreak, including through sexual contact, household contact, and within healthcare settings, when personal protective equipment was not available. CDC is working with Ministries of Health and in-country partners across the region on disease surveillance, laboratory capacity including testing materials, strengthening workforce capacity, case investigation, case management, infection prevention and control, border health, and risk communication and community engagement.

a readable Summary of epidemic in Legal Insurrection.

reports that after a year the vaccine doesn't give protection even after two doses.

Not mentioned: Is this in all cases or just in the MSM type who have HIV?

the reason for western countries to get worried about this disease is partly because it could morph into smallpox like epidemics, but also because mpox in the west is a sexually transmitted disease (unlike Africa, where touching lesions will spread it especially to children because of lack of lots of water and basic protective equipment such as gloves)....

the dirty little secret is that sex tourists have been bringing cases into Europe and the USA, and instead of stressing behavior modification or shutting down places in the west where the disease spreads, they will rely on vaccine. 

as for the deaths: remember: 

 

Malaria remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in DRC with 27.3 million malaria cases and 24,880 malaria deaths reported in 2022,