Sierra Leone has reported its first confirmed case of mpox since the highest global alert level against the potentially deadly viral disease was activated in 2024.
“The patient is a 27-year-old man from the Western Rural District (near the capital Freetown, editor’s note). Health teams are actively carrying out searches and investigations to identify possible exposed people and prevent the spread “said the statement. National Public Health Agency in a press release on social networks.
The case was confirmed on Jan. 10 through testing, the agency said. It is not specified which variant affects the patient, but the “classic” variant has already been observed on multiple occasions.
The patient placed in solitary confinement
Mpox is caused by a virus from the same family as the terrible smallpox. It is mainly manifested by high fever and the appearance of skin lesions, called blisters.
First identified in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 1970, the disease remained confined to a dozen African countries for a long time. In 2022 it began to spread to the rest of the world, particularly to developed countries where the virus had never circulated. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared its highest alert level in 2024.
Health authorities in Sierra Leone say they quickly activated the response. The patient was placed in isolation; his contacts are under surveillance for 21 days; Surveillance has been reinforced in the areas where the patient has been; A public awareness campaign is launched and health personnel receive protective equipment and prevention training.
Sierra Leone was one of the countries most affected by Ebola, which devastated West Africa ten years ago. The epidemic killed about 4,000 people there, including almost 7% of health workers, between 2014 and 2016.
Source: BFM TV
