The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised alarm in Europe over a worrying 89% increase in cases of monkeypox during August, a disease known as mpox. Spain is leading the way new wave of infectionsconsolidating itself as the country with the highest number of reported cases on the continent, suggesting, once again, that the health policies of the Minister of Health, Monique Garcia, They are totally false and devastating.
The Minister of Health, Mónica García, who was unable to suspend her vacation due to the declaration of the World Health Organization (WHO) As an international health emergency, this infection continues without measures being taken to stop the progression of this disease, with Spain leading the infections.
According to the latest reports, the virus, which had remained relatively under control after the outbreaks of 2022, has re-emerged in an alarming manner in several European countries, mainly affecting urban communities.
WHO stressed the importance of strengthening prevention and early detection measures, particularly in the most affected countries such as Spain, France and Germany. Experts point out that high population mobility, combined with lack of access to vaccines and a possible slackening of awareness campaigns, could contribute to this rapid spread. Efforts are being stepped up to ensure that vulnerable groups, such as immunocompromised people, have priority access to medical care, while health authorities are working on new strategies to contain the transmission of the virus across the region.
Globally, from January 1, 2022 to August 31, 2024, WHO total 106,310 cases of mpox laboratory-confirmed cases, including 234 deaths, in 123 countries across the six WHO regions, although the new clade Ib variant is present only in some countries in the African region. The overall rate of confirmed cases during this period is 0.2 percent.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (1,013 cases) is the country with the highest number of confirmed cases reported as of August 2024, followed by Australia (245 cases), Spain (136 cases) and the United States (113 cases).
A total of 2,082 new cases were reported in August 2024, representing a global increase of 15.6% from the previous month and the highest number of monthly cases since November 2022. Europe and Western Pacific Regions show the highest monthly increase in cases in August 2024 compared to July, with 89 and 68 percent, respectively. The Region of the Americas recorded a decrease in cases in August. The majority of cases in August 2024 were reported in the African Region (62.3%), followed by the European Region (13.7%) and the Western Pacific Region (13.2%).
The countries reporting the largest increase in cases are: Burundi, which reported the largest relative increase in the African Region (222 versus nine); Spain, which reported the largest increase in the European Region (136 versus 20); Argentina, which recorded the largest increase in the America region (26); Australia, which recorded the largest increase in the Western Pacific Region (245 compared to 101),
However, the epidemic continues with a relatively low level of transmission in the Region of the Americas, the European Region, the South-East Asia Region, Eastern Mediterranean and the Western Pacific. The African Region, in contrast, is showing sharply increasing levels of laboratory-confirmed cases and the highest number of cases recorded since global surveillance began in 2022.
Countries that have detected cases of the new MPOX clade Ib variant as of September 15, 2024 are: Democratic Republic of Congo (3,500 cases); Burundi (564); Uganda (11), Kenya (5), Rwanda (6), Sweden (1) and Thailand (1), the latter two after travel to Africa.
