Since the World Health Organization declared monkeypox (now known as mpox) to be no longer a public health emergency of international concern, the disease has continued to spread rapidly around the world, resulting in a significant surge in cases.
During the ongoing global outbreak that began a year ago, approximately 88,000 people in 111 countries have been infected.To add insult to injury, researchers have recently identified a necrotizing mpox that is associated with high mortality in advanced HIV-infected individuals and has been reported Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
Experts have expressed increased concern about the disease’s prevalence in regions such as Africa, Asia and Latin America, where limited or no access to vaccines is compounding the challenge.
China has observed clusters of cases, including in Beijing, prompting China to step up surveillance at ports of entry, investigate suspected cases, collect samples and perform laboratory testing. Likewise, Japan has seen an increase in cases since March 2023, suggesting that local transmission is occurring in the country.
Japanese researchers recently published in LancetThey emphasized that the key to curbing the spread of mpox in Asia is the widespread rollout of the vaccine in low- and middle-income countries.
African countries have yet to receive any mpox vaccines, despite pledges from rich countries. While the world recognized the threat of the disease a year ago, the African continent, home to long-running outbreaks, remains at the back of the vaccine distribution queue.
The Jynneos smallpox vaccine, made by Bavarian Nordic, has been approved for use in mpox patients, and many wealthy countries have received millions of doses.
recently published in european surveillance revealed that the Jynneos vaccine had an adjusted vaccine effectiveness (VE) of 88.8% when used for post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) with mpox. Vaccination was found to provide protection against the virus for up to seven weeks after exposure, with breakthrough infections resulting in milder symptoms that did not require hospitalization.
Dr. Ahmed Ogwell Ouma, acting director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, expressed his concerns because Africa has yet to accept the single-dose Jynneos vaccine.he said pass los angeles times Even if they wanted to buy the vaccine, there is no source available because it is produced in limited quantities, stockpiled by countries for their own needs, and unavailable in Africa.
The vaccine has yet to arrive despite South Korea’s pledge to donate 50,000 doses of the vaccine to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in November 2022 for distribution across the continent.
Meanwhile, the US has vaccinated 1.2 million people by May 2023. Sadly, 20 million doses of the Jynneos vaccine expired and were thrown away without being shared with other countries.
The latest figures from the CDC suggest that Florida could become the epicenter of an mpox summer outbreak. Vaccination rates are low in four counties within Florida, raising concerns about the spread of the disease.
Published by Medicaldaily.com