(VOVWORLD) - The mpox outbreak is still a public health emergency, the World Health Organization said Thursday.
 A healthcare worker treats a child with monkeypox in Nyiragongo, North Kivu, the Democratic Republic of Congo, on August 15, 2024. (Photo: XHN/VNA) |
The WHO, which first declared the emergency in August last year, said its decision was based on the continuing rise in the number of mpox cases and the geographic spread of the outbreak.
A new form of mpox, clade Ib, continues to primarily affect the Democratic Republic of Congo, with Uganda and Burundi also reporting significant cases, according to a recent report from the WHO. There have also been travel-related cases in Thailand and Britain.
Globally, there have been more than 21,000 cases confirmed by laboratory testing since the beginning of 2024, and 70 deaths, mainly in Congo, according to the WHO. Last year, there were also more than 50,000 suspected cases, and more than 1,000 deaths.