Image: CDC/ HANDOUT
By Conrad Mwanawashe
SADC Health Ministers are expected to convene an urgent meeting to assess the impact of Mpox and facilitate coordinated regional response to control the spread of the disease.
The just ended 44th Ordinary Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government, held in Harare, Saturday, directed the Secretariat to convene an urgent meeting after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the upsurge of Mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and a growing number of countries in Africa, a public health emergency.
“Summit (also) noted the Mpox situation on the continent and in the SADC region; the declaration by the WHO of mpox as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHIEC); the declaration of Mpox as a public health emergency of continental security (PHECS) by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) respectively, and urged Member States to strengthen disease surveillance, diagnosis testing and clinical care, infection prevention and control as well as awareness raising of the disease at all levels of the community Summit extended solidarity and support to Member States affected by Mpox and further requested the WHO, Africa CDC and other Partners to avail resources towards the mpox response in the region,” the SADC Communique said.
Mpox Key facts
Source: WHO website
Mpox (monkeypox) is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus. It can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes and fever.
Most people fully recover, but some get very sick.
Anyone can get mpox. It spreads from contact with infected:
- persons, through touch, animals, when hunting, skinning, or cooking them
- materials, such as contaminated sheets, clothes or needles
- pregnant persons, who may pass the virus on to their unborn baby.
If you have Mpox:
Tell anyone you have been close to recently
Stay at home until all scabs fall off and a new layer of skin forms
Cover lesions and wear a well-fitting mask when around other people
Avoid physical contact.
Signs and symptoms
Mpox causes signs and symptoms which usually begin within a week but can start 1–21 days after exposure. Symptoms typically last 2–4 weeks but may last longer in someone with a weakened immune system.
Common symptoms of mpox are:
- rash
- fever
- sore throat
- headache
- muscle aches
- back pain
- low energy
- swollen lymph nodes.
For some people, the first symptom of Mpox is a rash, while others may have different symptoms first.
The rash begins as a flat sore which develops into a blister filled with liquid and may be itchy or painful. As the rash heals, the lesions dry up, crust over and fall off.
Some people may have one or a few skin lesions and others have hundreds or more.
These can appear anywhere on the body such as the:
- palms of hands and soles of feet
- face, mouth and throat
- groin and genital areas anus.
