WHO convening emergency mpox meeting

The World Health Organization (WHO) will convene a meeting later this month to determine whether the mpox outbreak occurring in Africa still constitutes a a public health emergency of international concern.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared in August that the "upsurge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a growing number of countries in Africa" constituted a public health emergency of international concern.

The mpox strain at the center of the outbreak is separate from the strain that caused the 2022 outbreak in nonendemic countries.

As of Nov. 3, there have been 11,148 confirmed cases and 53 deaths across 19 countries due to the mpox outbreak this year. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and Uganda are considered to be the most impacted. In Africa, 15 countries are considered to have active, ongoing outbreaks of mpox.

"On 22 November, the Director-General of WHO will convene the second meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee regarding the upsurge of mpox 2024 to provide advice on whether the upsurge of mpox continues to constitute a public health emergency of international concern and, if so, on the proposed temporary recommendations to States Parties to respond to the event," stated a WHO situation report published Saturday.

The same report noted that mpox "appears to be plateauing in South Kivu, which is still reporting the most cases in the country."

"In other provinces there are mixed epidemiological trends, with a few hotspots often driving the increase in case reports. Testing challenges in several provinces in the country persist, hindering an understanding of the evolving epidemiology," the WHO update stated.

Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, said in a statement there is an urgent need for "mpox vaccine preparedness and deployment plans" as there continues to be difficulties in bring the outbreak under control using "traditional public health measures."

"With the mpox vaccine supply constraints, countries will need to develop very targeted deployment plans, guided by local epidemiology," Moeti said.

According to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, mpox vaccine deployment was delayed and supply is expected to remain limited in the "near- to medium-term."