The African Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) warned of difficulties in monitoring smallpox, as the number of cases has exceeded 45,000 since the beginning of the year.
Addis Ababa, October 25, 2020 (Xinhua) – The African Center for Disease Control and Prevention has warned of difficulties in monitoring smallpox, as the number of cases has exceeded 45,000 since the beginning of the year.
In an online press conference on Thursday evening, its director general, Jean Cassia, said that since the beginning of the year, 18 African countries have reported 45,327 cases of the previous monkeypox, of which 9,114 have been confirmed, while the number of deaths has surpassed the previous record. 1000 marks.
He revealed that the African continent recorded 2,729 new cases of smallpox during the past week, including 1,001 confirmed cases, and 36 new deaths were recorded, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi representing 96% of all new confirmed cases.
Data from the Africa CDC shows that Central Africa accounts for 85.5% of all reported cases and 99.5% of deaths. Additionally, the number of cases reported since the beginning of the year has increased by 400% compared to all of 2023.
While acknowledging that smallpox vaccination has been very well received in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, Mr. Cassia noted that all high-risk countries have completed their plans and are preparing to vaccinate their populations.
Furthermore, the head of the Africa CDC noted that five African countries, namely Cameroon, Gabon, Guinea, Rwanda and South Africa, have not reported any confirmed cases of infection over the past four weeks, adding that no new deaths have been reported outside Central Africa. since then. Last week.
Smallpox, formerly called monkeypox, was first discovered in laboratory monkeys in 1958. It is a rare viral disease usually transmitted through bodily fluids, spit and other contaminated materials. The infection usually causes fever, rash, and swollen lymph nodes.
In mid-August, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared the ongoing smallpox outbreak in Africa a public health emergency of security concern on the continent. Shortly after, the World Health Organization also classified smallpox as a public health emergency of international concern, and activated the highest global alert level for the disease for the second time in two years.
