Monkeypox is spreading rapidly in Africa. The World Health Organization has raised the alert level to the highest level. So how is Vietnam responding?
On August 14, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) a global public health emergency due to the rapid increase of the disease in many African countries caused by a new variant called clade Ib.
Mpox is currently raging in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and has spread to several neighboring African countries. More than 15,600 Mpox cases and 537 deaths have been reported in the country this year, a situation that WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Gebrselassie called "very worrying."
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| Monkeypox is spreading rapidly in Africa. The World Health Organization has raised the alert level to the highest level. So how is Vietnam responding? |
In Vietnam, in the Southern region, according to a report by the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City, in 2023-2024, 199 Mpox cases were recorded, including 8 deaths.
Ho Chi Minh City is the province with the highest number of cases (156 cases) and deaths (6 cases) in 2023-2024 in the Southern region. Accordingly, the total number of Mpox cases detected in 2023-2024 in Ho Chi Minh City is 156 cases, including 6 deaths. In 2024 alone, there were 49 Mpox cases, with no deaths.
Regarding the epidemiological characteristics of the cases in the City, 100% are male, with an average age of 32 years old (the youngest is 18 years old and the oldest is 53 years old).
The highest recorded age group was 30 - 39 years old (46%), 84% of cases identified themselves as men who have sex with men (MSM). Notably, 55% were living with HIV and 7% were on HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis.
Currently, the Mpox epidemic in the city is still being controlled through proactive surveillance activities at border gates and in the community.
The city has not recorded any changes in the epidemiology of the disease. The virus strain causing the disease is still clade IIb, which is the strain causing the epidemic in countries around the world. Clade Ib has not been detected. The epidemic is still mainly transmitted among homosexual or bisexual men, through unsafe sexual behavior.
On the Ministry of Health's side, according to a representative of the Department of Preventive Medicine, the unit is currently developing measures to prevent monkeypox, responding to the WHO warning.
This expert said that Vietnam has experience in preventing and combating monkeypox after recording the first case in October 2022. The context of declaring a state of emergency this time is different from the previous time. In 2022, Vietnam did not have much information about the disease or disease prevention measures. However, there are now effective disease prevention directions.
The Department is developing epidemic prevention measures, including plans to strengthen propaganda and control of border epidemics. Special attention will be paid to the factor that monkeypox is a sexually transmitted disease, improving epidemic prevention and propaganda among homosexual groups. It is expected that the Department of Preventive Medicine will soon issue a document guiding the prevention and control of monkeypox, suitable for the current context," he said.
According to the Ministry of Health, to date Vietnam has recorded more than 100 cases of monkeypox, mainly in men (accounting for more than 90%), with men who have sex with men (MSM) accounting for the highest proportion.
Mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus, a member of the Poxviridae family consisting of two main genetic lineages, clade I and II.
Mpox is endemic in countries in Central and West Africa. The disease initially occurred in monkeys, then spread from monkeys to humans, and is now transmitted from person to person through direct contact with secretions from pox blisters or from skin and mucous membrane lesions of infected people.
Common symptoms of Mpox include a skin rash or mucosal lesions that can last 2-4 weeks, accompanied by fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, fatigue, and swollen lymph nodes. Most people recover completely, but a percentage of people develop serious complications and may die.
Why is this Mpox outbreak worrying? According to experts, although Mpox outbreaks are not uncommon in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in recent times with the emergence of a new strain of the virus (clade Ib), the number of cases has increased rapidly, and the main route of transmission is still through sexual intercourse.
In July, more than 100 laboratory-confirmed cases of group 1b were reported in four countries neighboring the Democratic Republic of Congo where Mpox had not previously been reported, including Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda.
Experts believe the actual number of cases is higher because a large proportion of cases are clinically symptomatic but have not been tested.
In July 2022, as Mpox outbreaks spread to many countries around the world outside of Africa, WHO declared a global public health emergency because of the rapid spread of the disease through sexual contact in many countries where the virus had not been previously seen.
WHO declared the emergency over in May 2023 after the number of Mpox cases globally was controlled. However, the Mpox situation in Africa continues to be complicated.
WHO's decision to declare a global public health emergency is the second in three years related to Mpox disease.
According to WHO, the declaration of a state of emergency aims to mobilize funding and licensed vaccines for emergency use, to facilitate African countries' equitable access to vaccines, surveillance, diagnosis and treatment of diseases to promptly prevent the disease from spreading across the African continent.
To prevent monkeypox, experts recommend that if people discover that they or someone around them has symptoms of suspected Mpox, they should immediately go to medical facilities for advice, diagnosis and proper treatment.
Patients need to strictly follow the instructions of medical staff in caring for themselves, minimizing complications as well as strictly implementing infection prevention measures. The best preventive measure is to practice safe sex.
Source: https://baodautu.vn/viet-nam-ung-pho-ra-sao-voi-dich-dau-mua-khi-d222685.html
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