Latest news with #viralinfection
Free Malaysia Today
2 days ago
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
Ghana records first Mpox death as cases surge
Africa CDC figures released last week show over 47,000 confirmed Mpox cases across the continent since January last year. (EPA Images pic) ACCRA : Ghana has recorded its first death from Mpox, health authorities confirmed Sunday, amid a sharp rise in new infections in the West African country. Twenty-three new cases have been confirmed in the past week, bringing the total number of infections to 257 since the virus was first detected in Ghana in June 2022. The latest figure marks the highest weekly increase since the outbreak began and the first fatality recorded in the country. Health minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh told AFP 'that the situation is under control.' 'The key to limiting this outbreak is early detection and responsible behaviour,' Akandoh said. Mpox, previously known as Monkeypox, is a viral infection related to smallpox, causing fever, body aches and distinct skin lesions and can be deadly. The disease spreads through close physical contact with infected individuals or contaminated materials. A Ghanaian government agency responsible for public health is expected to receive vaccines from the World Health Organization this week. 'Our at-risk populations have already been identified, and we are ready to roll out vaccination as soon as doses arrive,' a director with the service, Franklyn Asiedu-Bekoe, told AFP. The outbreak in Ghana mirrors a broader trend across West Africa, where health officials are struggling to contain the disease. Thousands of cases have been recorded this year in the region, with Sierra Leone registering a total of 3,350 cases, including 16 deaths, from January to late May of this year. Elsewhere, thousands more cases have also been detected this year across DR Congo, Uganda and Burundi, according to WHO. Africa CDC figures released last week show over 47,000 confirmed cases and 221 deaths reported across the continent since January last year. At least 27,000 of those cases were recorded this year alone. Last month WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the virus remains an international health emergency amid the rise in West African cases.
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Contact tracing ongoing after rare mpox strain detected
Authorities fear the number of hospital contacts could grow as they trace health staff after a rare strain of mpox was detected in an overseas traveller. Health officials in Queensland believe 19 community contacts and 40 staff at a hospital have been exposed to the man, who recently returned to Australia from Africa. The patient was diagnosed with a rare strain of Clade 1 mpox after he presented to Logan Hospital, south of Brisbane. But he was not contagious during his journey to Australia, health officials say. "Those close contacts that he has been in contact, including at the emergency ward and in other locations, are being contact traced right now and identified at this stage," Health Minister Tim Nicholls said on Sunday. "At the moment his family are asymptomatic, that is, they're not showing any signs of the Clade 1 mpox, but they are isolating." The man's family includes children at high school, primary school and child care centres and those institutions are being identified, Mr Nicholls said. Health officials do not expect the number of community contacts to increase, but the number of hospital contacts could grow. Mpox is a viral infection that typically displays mild symptoms of fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes or fatigue, followed by a skin rash or lesions. "The contagion window we define as being four days before the onset of symptoms, until after the skin lesions have crusted over," Dr Geoffrey Playford from Metro South Hospital Service said. There have been 135 cases of Clade 2 mpox in Queensland over the past year. Only once before has Clade 1 been detected in Australia, after a returning traveller tested positive for the virus in NSW in May. The disease does not easily spread between people and mostly occurs through very close or intimate contact with someone infected. Groups at higher risk of infection include sexually active gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and their partners. People travelling to areas where the Clave 1 variant is circulating - particularly Central Africa and adjacent countries - and who are likely to have sexual contact are recommended to have a vaccine before departing. Health authorities say vaccinations for pre- and post-exposure to the disease are effective and are available for free through sexual health clinics and general practitioners. Two doses of vaccine are needed for optimal protection. The mpox outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organisation in August 2024. It was first detected in Australia in 2022, with the number of cases spiking to more than 1400 in 2024, according to Australia's National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System.
Daily Mail
19-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Rare strain of disease confirmed in Australia for just the second time
A rare strain of mpox, only seen once in Australia, has been detected in an overseas traveller. A case of the Clade 1 strain of mpox has been confirmed in a patient in Queensland 's Metro South Hospital and Health Service region, the state's health body said. The patient is believed to have acquired mpox overseas before arriving in Australia, state Health Minister Tim Nicholls said. 'Contact tracing has been occurring, and the community can be assured that exposure to members of the community has been very limited, and the public should not be concerned,' he said on Saturday. The detection is the second incidence of the mpox strain reported in Australia after a returned traveller tested positive for the virus in NSW in May. Mpox is a viral infection that typically displays mild symptoms of fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes or fatigue, followed by a skin rash or lesions. The disease does not easily spread between people and mostly occurs through very close or intimate contact with someone infected. Groups at higher risk of infection include sexually active gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and their partners. Health authorities say vaccinations for pre- and post-exposure to the disease are effective and are available for free through sexual health clinics and general practitioners. The World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern in August 2024. The disease was first detected in Australia in 2022, with the number of cases spiking to more than 1400 in 2024, according to Australia's National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System. There have been about 150 confirmed cases of mpox in 2025.
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Second case of rare mpox strain discovered in traveller
A rare strain of mpox, only seen once in Australia, has been detected in an overseas traveller. A case of the Clade 1 strain of mpox has been confirmed in a patient in Queensland's Metro South Hospital and Health Service region, the state's health body said. The patient is believed to have acquired mpox overseas before arriving in Australia, state Health Minister Tim Nicholls said. "Contact tracing has been occurring, and the community can be assured that exposure to members of the community has been very limited, and the public should not be concerned," he said on Saturday. The detection is the second incidence of the mpox strain reported in Australia after a returned traveller tested positive for the virus in NSW in May. Mpox is a viral infection that typically displays mild symptoms of fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes or fatigue, followed by a skin rash or lesions. The disease does not easily spread between people and mostly occurs through very close or intimate contact with someone infected. Groups at higher risk of infection include sexually active gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and their partners. Health authorities say vaccinations for pre- and post-exposure to the disease are effective and are available for free through sexual health clinics and general practitioners. #mpox remains a public health emergency of international concernThe announcement follows the fourth meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee regarding the upsurge of mpox. The Committee advised the Director-General @DrTedros to extend the public health emergency of international… — World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) June 9, 2025 Two doses of vaccine are needed for optimal protection, with vaccination reducing the risk of infection and severe disease. The World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern in August 2024. The disease was first detected in Australia in 2022, with the number of cases spiking to more than 1400 in 2024, according to Australia's National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System. There have been about 150 confirmed cases of mpox in 2025. Men make up the majority of reported notifications, accounting for more than 1700 of all confirmed cases.
NHK
08-07-2025
- Health
- NHK
Tick-borne infection cases surge in Japan
A research institute in Japan says the number of patients with a tick-borne viral infectious disease called Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome, or SFTS, has hit a record high for this time of year. Patients with SFTS mostly get the infection through tick bites. The Japan Institute for Health Security, or JIHS, says 91 cases were reported in 24 prefectures from the start of this year through June 29. The figure exceeded the previous high of 82 cases reported in the same period in 2023. An NHK survey of local government offices found that at least nine deaths from SFTS were reported in Shizuoka, Aichi, Mie, Kagawa and Miyazaki Prefectures. Maeda Ken, a senior JIHS official, says a rise in the number of wild animals such as deer and wild boars may have increased the number of ticks that suck blood from the animals, possibly resulting in more SFTS cases. SFTS can be transmitted not only by tick bites but also from cats and dogs that develop the disease after being infected with the virus. The JIHS says the number of cats confirmed to be infected was eight in 2017, when a nationwide survey began, but the number rose sharply to 194 last year. This year, 36 cases were reported nationwide through March, and in May an infection of a pet cat was reported in Ibaraki Prefecture as the first case in the Kanto region. In Mie Prefecture, a veterinarian who treated a cat that developed SFTS became infected and died in May. Maeda says areas where cats have been confirmed to be infected are spreading, so caution is needed for infection from cats to humans. He says the blood and secretions of cats that have developed SFTS contain large amounts of the virus, so their owners and veterinarians need to be especially careful. Maeda says it is important that cat owners keep their pets indoors. He is also calling for the use of tick repellents for cats and dogs.
