the health emergency declared in Sierra Leone

On August 14, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the resurgence of the Mpox Clade I variant on the African continent constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). Currently, the virus continues to actively circulate and has spread to Sierra Leone. Indeed, according to local authorities, two people were infected with Monkeypox. The first case was reported last week. A second case was reported after a 21-year-old man suffered symptoms.

This viral infectious pathology, transmitted from animals to humans, manifests itself by a vesicular eruption, made up of vesicles filled with liquid which progress towards drying out, the formation of crusts then scarring. “The vesicles are more concentrated on the face, in the anogenital area, the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. They can also be present on the trunk and the limbs. The mucous membranes are also affected, in the mouth and the region genital”, indicates the Regional Health Agency (ARS) Île-de-France. This rash may be accompanied by itching, fever, headache, body aches and fatigue. Lymph nodes may also be swollen and painful, under the jaw, in the neck, or in the groin.

Mpox: the health emergency “allows immediate action to mobilize the necessary resources”

Faced with the confirmation of the two cases of Mpox in Sierra Leone, the Minister of Health, Austin Demby, declared a health emergency. She “allows us to act immediately to mobilize the resources necessary to contain the disease, prevent its spread and care for those affected,” he told reporters in Freetown. In detail, the latter announced a strengthening of border surveillance and testing, as well as the launch of a national awareness campaign. “We ask all our citizens to remain calm, stay informed and promptly report any suspicious cases to the authorities.”

The minister added that the country's medical system was ready to respond to cases, highlighting the experience gained during the Ebola and Covid-19 outbreaks. Indeed, Sierra Leone was one of the countries hardest hit by Ebola, which ravaged West Africa ten years ago in an epidemic that killed some 4,000 people, including nearly 7% of caregivers, between 2014 and 2016.

“In 2024, 215 cases of Mpox, all due to clade 2, have been declared” in France

As a reminder, Mpox was first identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970. This disease was generally detected in a dozen African countries, but it began to spread more widely in 2022, reaching territories where the virus had never been circulated before. In the spring, cases of Mpox were detected in Europe and North America unrelated to travel to a country where this disease usually occurs. “Between May and December 2022, 4,967 cases of Mpox linked to the clade 2 virus were recorded in France (87% of cases were confirmed by serological analyses). In 2023, a new viral epidemic appeared in Africa. It is due to the clade 1 virus, very contagious and more virulent. In 2024, 215 cases of Mpox, all due to the clade. 2, were declared, with an average of three cases per week at the end of the year.specifies Health Insurance.

On January 7, 2025, French health authorities revealed that they had identified a first case of Mpox clade I b in France, more precisely in Brittany.