By Oluwaseun Sonde
The South African Government has announced fifth case of Monkeypox who is a 28years-old man from the city of Johannesburg with a travel history to the Netherlands and Spain.
Health Minister who made the announcement during a media briefing on Friday, said the high number of confirmed positive cases is becoming a cause for concern.
According to Phaahla, "the latest patient is a 28-year-old man from Johannesburg with a travel history to the Netherlands and Spain. This means the country has recorded five positive cases between 22 June and 17 August 2022.
“Although monkeypox is less contagious than smallpox and COVID-19, and causes less severe illness, the current rising number of confirmed positive cases is becoming a cause for concern and cannot be taken for granted,” he told the media.
Adding, "For South Africa currently, monkeypox is considered low risk. Our public health response is in contact tracing … there is no isolation of contacts. There is only isolation of the positive case."
The Minister said the latest case had been confirmed three days after the previous one in the Western Cape. "The cases are believed to be unlinked.
"Before the current outbreak, South Africa had never recorded positive cases of monkeypox, Phaahla said.
He furher said the disease was similar to smallpox. "This is not spread through droplets, aerosol, while South Africa stopped smallpox vaccinations around 1982, when the global vaccination campaign came to an end due to the successful eradication of smallpox.
"Since then, there have been no smallpox vaccines offered to the general population, and smallpox vaccines have not been included in the Expanded Programme on Immunisation in South Africa.
"However, most people over 40 years of age will have some immunity to monkeypox from their smallpox vaccinations."
The Minister stated that the country does not have any smallpox or monkeypox vaccines registered.
"The scientists have advised that at the current moment, there is no need for mass vaccination because the situation is under control.
"This is in line with the WHO recommending against mass vaccination of general populations with monkeypox vaccines at this point in time, based on limited access and supply of available vaccines and because most people are not at risk of infection."
Phaahla said the Ministerial Advisory Committee on Covid-19 Vaccines would look into whether South Africa needed a vaccine.
WHO says 35,000 cases, 12 deaths reported from 92 countries
Meanwhile, Monkeypox cases have seen an exponential jump of 20 per cent in the last week with more than 35,000 infections and 12 deaths reported from 92 countries, according to World Health Organization (WHO).
"Almost 7,500 cases were reported last week, a 20 per cent increase over the previous week, which was also 20 per cent more than the week before," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a media briefing recently.
Almost all cases are being reported from Europe and the Americas, and nearly all cases continue to be reported among men who have sex with men.
It underscore the importance for all countries to design and deliver services and information tailored to these communities that protect health, human rights and dignity, the WHO chief said, imploring countries to enhance disease surveillance and contact tracing.
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