{"id":23737,"date":"2024-08-29T08:29:52","date_gmt":"2024-08-29T08:29:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lluita.org\/com-a-experts-en-mpox-assessorem-el-govern-de-la-republica-democratica-del-congo-per-frenar-la-infeccio-internacionalment\/"},"modified":"2024-09-02T13:31:16","modified_gmt":"2024-09-02T13:31:16","slug":"com-a-experts-en-mpox-assessorem-el-govern-de-la-republica-democratica-del-congo-per-frenar-la-infeccio-internacionalment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lluita.org\/en\/com-a-experts-en-mpox-assessorem-el-govern-de-la-republica-democratica-del-congo-per-frenar-la-infeccio-internacionalment\/","title":{"rendered":"We advise the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to stop the infection internationally"},"content":{"rendered":"
This summer, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international health emergency related to the outbreak of mpox that has been declared in Africa and the increase in infections caused by this virus, formerly known as monkeypox. To find out the extent of the infection and, above all, to find out what has been discovered so far, we spoke with Dr. Oriol Mitj\u00e0, researcher at the Fight Against Infections Foundation and doctor at the Infectious Diseases Service at the Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital, who is advising the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in trying to stop the spread of the disease<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n

What is mpox?<\/strong> <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Mpox or monkeypox is a zoonotic infection that is usually transmitted from animals to humans and, in this case, is caused by a virus of the Orthopoxvirus genus. This infection was mainly found in limited outbreaks in forested areas of central and western Africa, but in 2022 there was a global epidemic outbreak of sexual transmission with more than 90,000 affected. In this case, it was a mild or moderate infection that mainly caused blisters in the mouth, genitals and anal area. However, this summer the WHO declared an international health emergency due to a new outbreak located in central-eastern Africa, especially in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is more contagious and not sexually transmitted<\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n

What is the difference between the 2022 mpox outbreak and this summer’s?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

The 2022 and 2024 mpox outbreaks have some important differences in terms of spread<\/strong>, health response<\/strong> and public awareness<\/strong>. As for the 2022 mpox outbreak, it was the first large-scale outbreak outside endemic areas in Africa, as it also affected populations in Europe and North America. Furthermore, its transmission was mainly sexual, with a high concentration among men who have sex with men. Thus, we can say that it was a mild or moderate infectious outbreak. In contrast, the mpox infection this summer has been very different, as transmission has been direct and not just sexual, i.e. through skin lesions, contact with infected animals or through contaminated objects. It should be noted that this outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has affected 30,000 people in the last two years.<\/span><\/span> 75% were children under 15 years of age and there were around 1,200 deaths, mostly among children who had other predisposing factors, such as malnutrition<\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n

There has been much talk about clade 1 and clade 2 variants. What are the main differences between them?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Monkeypox is classified into different variants known as clades. The two main variants are clade 1 and clade 2. The clade 2 strain is the one that caused the infectious outbreak in 2022. This summer, the WHO declared an international health emergency due to clade 1 mpox. In general, we could say that the clade 1 strain is more serious than the one that has been circulating until now because it has a higher mortality rate<\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n

What are the symptoms of mpox?<\/span><\/span><\/strong>
\n<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Most people who contract monkeypox recover within a few weeks of becoming infected, but in some cases the illness can become severe, depending on the strain of the virus itself, access to medical care, and the health status of the infected person<\/span>.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

The main symptoms of the disease are: <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n