Despite the WHO declaring mpox a global emergency in 2022, Africa has received no vaccine or treatment.

London: The ongoing outbreak of Mpox in Congo and elsewhere in Africa has been declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO) requiring urgent action to contain the spread of the virus.

Sweden has confirmed the first case of a new type of mpox, previously confined to Africa, in a traveller. Meanwhile, health officials across Europe have warned that additional imported cases are likely.

Here's a look at mpox and how likely it is to spread further:

Is Mpox about to trigger another pandemic?

This seems highly unlikely. Recent pandemics such as swine flu and Covid-19 are usually caused by airborne viruses, even by asymptomatic individuals.

Mpox, also known as monkeypox, is primarily transmitted by direct skin-to-skin contact with infected people or through contact with contaminated clothing or linen. The virus often results in a prominent sore on the skin, which can stop intimate communication.

To be safe, it is recommended to avoid direct physical contact with individuals with mpox-like lesions, avoid sharing personal items such as utensils, clothing, or bedding, and practice strict hygiene, including frequent hand washing.

On Friday, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control announced that more imported cases of Mpox from Africa were “highly likely”, although the possibility of a local outbreak in Europe was highly unlikely. Scientists say the risk to the general population in countries without current mpox outbreaks is low.

How is Mpox different from Covid-19?

Mpox spreads more slowly than the coronavirus. Shortly after the emergence of the coronavirus in China, the number of cases rapidly increased from a few hundred to several thousand; In a single week in January, the number of cases increased tenfold.

By March 2020, when the WHO declared Covid-19 a pandemic, there had been more than 126,000 infections and 4,600 deaths, nearly three months after the virus was initially detected. By contrast, since 2022, according to the WHO, mpox has taken almost the same amount of time to reach about 100,000 infections worldwide, with about 200 deaths.

As in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccines and treatments for mpox are now available.

Director of Duke University's Global Health Institute, Dr. “We have what it takes to stop MPOX,” said Chris Bearer. “This is not the situation during Covid when there was no vaccine and no antiviral.

How soon will these Mpox outbreaks be stopped?

The 2022 mpox outbreak, which affected more than 70 countries, was quickly contained within months, mainly due to the implementation of vaccination programs and the availability of drugs for at-risk groups in rich nations. Currently, mpox cases are largely concentrated in Africa, with 96% of cases and deaths in the Congo. Congo, one of the world's poorest countries, has a failing health system largely under pressure from malnutrition, cholera and measles. Despite Congolese authorities requesting 4 million vaccines from international donors, none have yet been received.

Despite the WHO declaring mpox a global emergency in 2022, Africa has received no vaccine or treatment. Duke University's Bearer said it is in the world's best interest to invest now to prevent outbreaks in Africa.

“We are in a really good place to get this epidemic under control, but we have to make a decision to prioritize Africa,” he said.

(with AP input)