A new type of Mpox called "clade 1b" appears to be deadlier and able to spread from person-to-person more easily than previous forms. Mortality rates are as high as 10% of infections. (Also Read | World Health Organisation declares Mpox a global health emergency ) Mpox, formally known as monkeypox, is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus.
Clade 1b Mpox was first detected in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in central Africa, where it started spreading in September 2023. Infections have since been reported in Cameroon, the Central African Republic (CAR), and Rwanda. New cases in Uganda and Kenya in early August 2024 were also linked to clade 1b.
The World Health Organization on Wednesday declared the spread of Mpox to be a global public health emergency, the second time in two years it has categorized the virus as such. In a post on social media platform X in early August, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that because a "deadlier strain of Mpox spread to multiple African countries," the WHO, Africa CDC and local governments were "scaling up the response to interrupt disease transmission." (Also Read | Add more omega-3 fats to morning diet during menstruation; know the benefits ) Between the beginning of 2022 and July 28, 2024, a total of 37,583 cases and 1,451 deaths from Mpox have been reported in 15 African countries, according to data from Africa CDC.
What are Mpox clades? Mpox is separated into two different clades: clade I and clade II.