Kenya confirms one new Mpox case

 

Kenya has confirmed one new Mpox case, bringing the total confirmed cases to nine.

Health CS Deborah Barasa said in a statement the nine confirmed cases are among 227 samples tested to date by the National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL) out of which 211 tests returned negative results while seven are still being tested.

Kenya confirmed her first Mpox case on July 24, 2024, when a male truck driver reported at the Taita-Taveta one-stop border point (OSBP).

CS Barasa said the latest positive case is a 37-year-old male truck driver who had travelled to Rwanda and Uganda.

“The case was detected by our surveillance team in Nakuru county,” the CS said.

She added that the nine confirmed cases are distributed across eight counties.

Nakuru has two, Taita Taveta (1), Busia (1), Nairobi (1), Mombasa (1), Makueni (1), Kajiado (1), and Bungoma (1).

“The ministry wishes to report that no deaths have been registered among the confirmed cases,” CS Barasa said.

The CS said surveillance efforts remain extensive where 68 contacts have since been traced, 61 of whom have been monitored for the recommended 21-day period.

She said the remaining seven contacts are being monitored by public health teams and Community Health Promoters (CHPs) in the respective counties.

“Only one of the contacts tested positive for Mpox during the monitoring period,” the CS said.

She added that screening of travellers at all Points of Entry (POEs) is continuing with 15,541 travellers having been screened in the last 24 hours alone.

This raises the total number of screened travellers across 26 POEs to 1,128,976, CS Barasa said.

To mitigate the spread of Mpox, the ministry has called on Kenyans to observe various preventive measures including avoiding close physical contact with infected individuals or persons showing symptoms of Mpox.

The ministry has also advised against touching items such as bedding or clothing that have been used by an infected individual and for people to limit the number of sexual partners to reduce the risk of exposure.

Kenyans have also been advised to wash their hands regularly with soap and water, or use alcohol-based hand sanitiser and to avoid being in contact with wild animals and refrain from consuming bushmeat.

“By staying informed and adhering to recommended measures, we can collectively control this outbreak. Vigilance remains key in protecting our communities from the spread of Mpox,” CS Barasa said.

In case of a suspected Mpox case, contact the ministry through emergency hotline numbers 719, 0729471414, or 0732353535.

by EMMANUEL WANJALA