Home Health As Mpox Virus Hits Liberia 7-Year Old Child’s Mother, Others Quarantined …As NPHIL Cautions Citizens To Take Preventive Measures

As Mpox Virus Hits Liberia 7-Year Old Child’s Mother, Others Quarantined …As NPHIL Cautions Citizens To Take Preventive Measures

by News Manager

MONROVIA: The National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), has confirmation Liberia’s first Mpox case.

According to NPHIL, the first confirmed case of the Mpox virus is a seven (7) years old girl from Jeadepo, Dodrukon, Sinoe County, Southeastern Region of Liberia.

The NPHIL also revealed that it has discovered a total of eight suspected cases of monkeypox virus, with one confirmed.

Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan, Director General of NPHIL, on Monday, September 2, 2024, told a news conference at NPHIL in Congo Town that the public health institute has identified eight suspected cases of the virus, one of which is confirmed.

“We have one case, and that case is active, confirmed, managed, and being treated. No deaths have occurred so far, and this effort seeks to prevent the spread of the virus to neighboring counties,” the NPHIL boss stated.

Dr. Nyan indicated that the recent suspected individuals, including the confirmed child’s mother and other relatives are currently quarantined and undergoing testing to determine whether they have contracted the virus.

He added that in response to the first Mpox case in the country, NPHIL team in collaboration with the Ministry of Health embarked on an intensive contact tracing initiative to identify and monitor individuals who may have come in contact with the virus.

The NPHIL Boss also mentioned that their initiative includes tracking down anyone who may have had close contact with the confirmed and suspected cases of monkeypox, as well as implementing preventive measures to stop the spread of the virus.

Dr. Nyan, at the same time, calls on the public to take preventive measures to curtail the spread of the virus.

He also urged all Liberians to practice good hygiene, avoid contact with sick individuals, and as well seek medical attention if they experience any symptoms of the virus.

Mpox is an infectious disease that can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, fever, headache, muscle ache, back pain and low energy. Most people fully recover, but some get very sick.

Mpox is caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV). It is an enveloped double-stranded DNA virus of the Orthopoxvirus genus in the Poxviridae family, which includes variola, cowpox, vaccinia and other viruses.
There are two distinct clades of the virus: clade I (with subclades Ia and Ib) and clade II (with subclades IIa and IIb).

A global outbreak of clade IIb began in 2022 and continues to this day, including in some African countries.

There are also growing outbreaks of clades Ia and Ib affecting the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other countries in Africa. As of August 2024, clade Ib has also been detected beyond Africa.

The natural reservoir of the virus is unknown, but various small mammals such as squirrels and monkeys are susceptible.

Mpox spreads from person to person mainly through close contact with someone who has mpox, including members of a household.

Close contact includes skin-to-skin (such as touching or sex) and mouth-to-mouth or mouth-to-skin contact (such as kissing), and it can also include being face-to-face with someone who has mpox (such as talking or breathing close to one another, which can generate infectious respiratory particles).

People with multiple sexual partners are at higher risk of acquiring mpox.

People can also contract mpox from contaminated objects such as clothing or linen, through needle injuries in health care, or in community settings such as tattoo parlours.

During pregnancy or birth, the virus may be passed to the baby.

Contracting mpox during pregnancy can be dangerous for the fetus or newborn infant and can lead to loss of the pregnancy, stillbirth, death of the newborn, or complications for the parent.
Animal-to-human transmission of mpox occurs from infected animals to humans from bites or scratches, or during activities such as hunting, skinning, trapping, cooking, playing with carcasses or eating animals.

The animal reservoir of the monkeypox virus remains unknown and further studies are underway.

More research is needed on how mpox spreads during outbreaks in different settings and under different conditions.

Signs and symptoms
Mpox causes signs and symptoms which usually begin within a week but can start 1–21 days after exposure. Symptoms typically last 2–4 weeks but may last longer in someone with a weakened immune system.

Common symptoms of mpox are: rash, fever, sore throat, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy, and swollen lymph nodes.

For some people, the first symptom of mpox is a rash, while others may have fever, muscle aches or sore throat first.

The mpox rash often begins on the face and spreads over the body, extending to the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.

It can also start on other parts of the body where contact was made, such as the genitals.

It starts as a flat sore, which develops into a blister filled with liquid that may be itchy or painful. As the rash heals, the lesions dry up, crust over and fall off.

Some people may have one or a few skin lesions and others have hundreds or more.

These can appear anywhere on the body including: palms of hands and soles of feet, face, mouth and throat, groin and genital areas, and anus.

Some people also have painful swelling of their rectum (proctitis) or pain and difficulty when peeing (dysuria) or when swallowing.

People with mpox can pass the disease on to others until all sores have healed and a new layer of skin has formed.

Some people can be infected without developing any symptoms. Although getting mpox from someone who is asymptomatic (not showing symptoms) has been reported, information is still limited on how common it is.

Children, pregnant people and people with weak immune systems, including people living with HIV that is not well controlled, are at higher risk for serious illness and death due to complications from mpox.

Some people with mpox become very sick. For example, the skin can become infected with bacteria, leading to abscesses or serious skin damage.

Other complications include pneumonia; corneal infection with loss of vision; pain or difficulty swallowing; vomiting and diarrhoea causing dehydration or malnutrition; and infections of the blood (sepsis), brain (encephalitis), heart (myocarditis), rectum (proctitis), genital organs (balanitis) or urinary passages (urethritis). Mpox can be fatal in some cases.

Identifying mpox can be difficult because other infections and conditions can look similar. It is important to distinguish mpox from chickenpox, measles, bacterial skin infections, scabies, herpes, syphilis, other sexually transmitted infections, and medication-associated allergies. Someone with mpox may also have another sexually transmitted infection at the same time, such as syphilis or herpes.

Alternatively, a child with suspected mpox may also have chickenpox. For these reasons, testing is key for people to get care as early as possible and prevent severe illness and further spread.

The preferred laboratory test for mpox is detection of viral DNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The best diagnostic specimens are taken directly from the rash – skin, fluid or crusts – collected by vigorous swabbing. In the absence of skin lesions, testing can be done using swabs of the throat or anus.

Testing blood is not recommended. Antibody detection methods may not be useful as they do not distinguish between different orthopoxviruses.

HIV testing should be offered to adults with mpox, and children as appropriate.

Diagnostic tests for other conditions should be considered where feasible, for example, varicella zoster virus (VZV), syphilis and herpes. Writes Linda Gbartie

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