Nairobi, Jan 17 Kenya's Ministry of Health on Friday confirmed two more cases of monkeypox, raising the total count in the country to 33, as the ministry said it has intensified public health response measures to swiftly detect and contain the spread of the disease.
Mary Muthoni, Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Health, said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, that the two cases had been confirmed in the northwestern county of Kericho and Taita Taveta County in the coastal region.
Muthoni said the outbreak has spread across 12 counties, forcing the ministry to scale up efforts to control its spread through enhanced surveillance and robust contact tracing.
"To accelerate the response to the outbreak in the affected counties, the ministry, in collaboration with county governments and partners, has enhanced surveillance through active case search, contact listing, tracing investigation, and symptomatic management of confirmed cases, including offering mental health and psychosocial support to the infected and affected persons," she said.
Muthoni said 225 contacts have been identified and 216 of them have been monitored for the recommended 21-day period. Since the onset of the outbreak, over 2.9 million travellers have been screened at points of entry.
She said public health campaigns focused on educating the public about monkeypox prevention and control are actively underway, Xinhua news agency reported.
With schools reopening nationwide, the ministry has raised concerns about the increased risk of monkeypox among children who may experience more severe symptoms due to their developing immune systems, Muthoni said, adding that the education and health ministries have implemented strict health measures in schools to mitigate this risk.
Monkeypox is an infectious disease that can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, fever, headache, muscle ache, back pain and low energy. Most people fully recover, but some get very sick.
Caused by the Monkeypox Virus (MPXV), it is an enveloped double-stranded DNA virus of the Orthopoxvirus genus in the Poxviridae family, which includes variola, cowpox, vaccinia and other viruses. There are two distinct clades of the virus: clade I (with subclades Ia and Ib) and clade II (with subclades IIa and IIb).
A global outbreak of clade IIb began in 2022 and continues to this day, including in some African countries. There are also growing outbreaks of clades Ia and Ib affecting the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other countries in Africa.
The natural reservoir of the virus is unknown, but various small mammals such as squirrels and monkeys are susceptible.
--IANS
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