Zimbabwe Records Two Mpox Cases

The
Ministry
of
Health
and
Child
Care
wishes
to
inform
the
nation
that
Zimbabwe
now
has
two
(2)
confirmed
cases
of
Mpox:
one
in
Harare
and
another
in
Mberengwa.
Both
cases
are
in
isolation
at
home
and
are
receiving
appropriate
care.
Both
cases
are
stable
and
recovering.

Mpox
(formerly
known
as
Monkeypox)
was
declared
a
Public
Health
Emergency
of
Continental
Security
by
the
Africa
Centre
for
Disease
Control
(CDC)
on
the
13th
of
August
2024.

It
was
then
declared
a
Public
Health
Emergency
of
International
Concern
under
the
International
Health
Regulations
(IHR
2005)
by
the
World
Health
Organization
(WHO)
on
the
14th
of
August
2024.
In
Africa,
there
are
7535
confirmed
cumulative
cases
of
Mpox
and
32
deaths
reported
so
far
in
2024.

Here
in
Zimbabwe,
Case
number
1
is
an
11-year-old
male
child
with
a
known
history
of
having
travelled
to
South
Africa
in
August
2024,
returning
to
Zimbabwe
on
the
10th
of
September
2024.

He
developed
symptoms
on
the
23
of
September
2024.
He
is
currently
in
isolation
at
home
and
is
no
longer
infectious.
Seven
(7)
contacts
have
since
been
identified
and
are
being
monitored.

Case
number
2
is
a
24-year-old
male
with
a
known
history
of
having
travelled
to
Tanzania
on
the
14th
of
September
2024
and
came
back
on
the
21
of
September
2024.
He
developed
symptoms
on
the
29th
of
September
2024.
He
is
currently
in
isolation
at
home
and
is
no
longer
infectious.
Contact
tracing
and
monitoring
are
underway.

Mpox
is
a
rare
viral
infection
caused
by
an
Mpox
virus
that
is
endemic
in
Central
and
West
Africa.
It
spreads
through
close
contact
with
people,
animals
or
through
materials
infected
with
the
virus.
Signs
and
symptoms
of
Mpox
include:

• Fever
• Rash
  (that
  can
  look
  like
  pimples
  or
  blisters
  that
  appear
  on
  the
  face,
  inside
  the
  mouth,
  or
  other
  parts
  of
  the
  body,
  especially
  hands,
  feet
  and
  chest)
• Headache
• Muscle
  aches
  and
  backache
• Swollen
  lymph
  nodes
• Chills
• Exhaustion
• Respiratory
  symptoms
  (sore
  throat,
  nasal
  congestion
  or
  cough)

The
incubation
period
is
usually
3
to
21
days
and
is
typically
slow
developing
over
2-4
weeks.
The
disease
is
normally
self-limiting
but
can
be
severe
in
individuals
with
compromised
immunity
and
other
co-morbidities.

This
means
that
the
condition
resolves
on
its
own
between
three
(3)
to
Four
(4)
weeks
during
which
time
health
interventions
take
the
form
of
supportive
treatment
including
antibiotics
and
painkillers
as
required.

The
disease
can
be
prevented
through:

• Avoiding
  contact
  with
  individuals
  showing
  symptoms.
• Avoiding
  sharing
  clothes,
  bedding
  and
  other
  personal
  items
  with
  persons
  showing
  symptoms.
• Isolating
  persons
  showing
  symptoms
  from
  others
  who
  could
  be
  at
  risk
  of
  infection.
• Practising
  good
  personal
  hygiene
  including
  frequent
  hand
  washing
  with
  soap
  under
  running
  water,
  or
  through
  the
  use
  of
  alcohol-based
  hand
  sanitisers
  regularly.
• Avoid
  sexual
  contact
  with
  persons
  showing
  symptoms.
• Using
  personal
  protective
  equipment
  (PPE)
  when
  caring
  for
  infected
  persons.

The
Ministry
of
Health
and
Child
Care
wishes
to
reassure
the
public
that
the
situation
is
under
control
and
urges
the
Zimbabwean
public
not
to
panic.
Any
persons
with
symptoms
are
urged
to
report
to
the
nearest
health
facility
as
soon
as
possible.

Equally,
the
public
is
also
promptly
urged
to
report
suspected
cases
to
the
nearest
health
facility.
The
health
and
safety
of
our
communities
remains
our
top
priority.

For
more
information,
please
contact
Provincial
Medical
Directors,
City
Health
Directors
and
the
Department
of
Epidemiology
and
Disease
Control
HQ.
The
Ministry
has
also
placed
all
its
structures
on
high
alert,
including
at
all
ports
of
entry.

Preparedness
and
Response
activities.

1.
The
M-pox
preparedness
and
response
plan
is
now
in
place
and
has
been
shared
widely.

2.
Activation
of
the
National
and
subnational
Incident
Management
Systems
has
been
done.

3.
Training
of
healthcare
workers
on
Integrated
Disease
Surveillance
and
Response
(IDSR)
is
ongoing.

4.
Conducting
awareness
campaigns
in
the
provinces
to
ensure
that
the
community
is
well
informed
on
M-pox.

5.
Information
Education
and
Communication
(IEC)
material
has
been
developed
and
is
being
distributed.

6.
Enhanced
surveillance
at
all
the
Ports
of
Entry
including
monitoring
of
travellers
coming
into
the
country.

7.
Enhanced
community-based
surveillance
systems
are
in
place.

8.
Identification
and
establishment
of
isolation
centres
throughout
the
country
is
underway.

9.
The
Ministry
will
continue
to
update
the
nation
through
regular
press
briefings
as
the
situation
evolves.