The new strain of the mpox virus, clade Ib, which has been rapidly spreading out of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is evolving faster than expected. Scientists have pointed warned that limited resources and equipment are hampering efforts to properly track the virus. The strain caught the world’s attention after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a new health emergency.
Global spotlight on mpox The virus typically causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions and can be fatal. The virus, which has been a public health issue in parts of Africa since 1970, saw a resurgence in global concern in 2022, leading the WHO to declare, and later end, a global health emergency. Now, clade Ib, a mutated version of the endemic clade I, is raising alarms as it spreads across Africa and into other countries.
Congo has reported over 18,000 suspected cases of clade I and clade Ib mpox and 615 deaths this year, according to the WHO. In the last month, there have been 222 confirmed clade Ib cases in four African countries, as well as isolated cases in Sweden and Thailand linked to travel in Africa. Limited information a concern Reuters , citing scientists in Africa, Europe, and the United States, expressed concern over multiple unknowns surrounding the virus, including its severity and transmission dynamics.
Dr Dimie Ogoina, an infectious disease expert in Nigeria and chair of the WHO’s mpox emergency committee, voiced concerns about the limited understanding of the outbreak. .