Another ‘epidemic-like’ situation has arisen in south-west Congo where a flu-like illness has killed dozens of people in two weeks. The deadly flu-like disease has taken the lives of dozens of people in a span of two weeks. The deaths recorded between 10 November and 25 November occurred in the Panzi health region of Kwango province. According to provincial health minister Apollinaire Yumba, symptoms of the deadly mystery disease include fever, headache, cough and anemia.

Deputy provincial governor Remi Saki said Tuesday that the death toll ranged from 67 to 143. “A team of epidemiology experts is expected to arrive in the area to collect samples and identify the cause of the outbreak,” Psaki said.

Yumba urged the public to avoid contact with dead bodies to prevent further spread and called for immediate medical assistance from national and international partners.

Meanwhile, Congo is battling an ongoing Mpox epidemic with more than 47,000 suspected cases and more than 1,000 deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). A WHO representative confirmed that the organization is aware of the new outbreak and is working with local health authorities to collect samples for analysis. The representative spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to discuss the situation publicly.

Since January 1, 2024, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reported more than 47,000 suspected MPOX cases and more than 1,000 suspected deaths, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of these, nearly 9,000 cases have been confirmed through laboratory testing, including more than 40 confirmed deaths.

Mpox has been classified into two groups: clade I and clade II. Clade I is associated with more severe disease and higher mortality than clade II. Clade I viruses are endemic to the DRC, but have spread to neighboring countries such as Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda and Uganda.

Travel-associated cases of clade I MPox have been reported in Canada, Germany, India, Kenya, Sweden, Thailand, the United Kingdom, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The first case of clade I mpox associated with the Central and East African outbreak has also been identified in the United States. Despite this, the risk to the general public in the US remains low.

On August 14, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the ongoing outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

How to protect yourself from mpox

If you are in a high-risk area, you can also protect yourself and your loved ones by taking some precautionary steps:

– Avoid close contact with sick people with signs and symptoms of mumps, including people with skin or genital lesions.

– Avoid contact with wild animals (living or dead) in areas where Mpox occurs regularly.

– Avoid contact with contaminated materials used by people who are sick with mumps (such as clothing, bedding, or materials used in health care settings) or that have come into contact with wild animals.

– Avoid eating or preparing meat from wild animals (bushmeat) or using products (creams, lotions, powders) derived from wild animals.

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