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Generated on 2024-10-07
This report provides an overview of the epidemiological situation of Mpox as reported by Africa CDC as of 2024-10-06. The report includes information on the number of cases, deaths, and demographic characteristics of the affected population at different administrative levels. The report focuses on confirmed, probable, and suspected cases as defined by DRC working case definitions published at https://africacdc.org/disease/monkeypox/. Note that the definitions are subject to change as the outbreak evolves.
Note that figures shown below are generated using simulated data.
1. Overview
This report provides an overview of the epidemiological situation of Mpox as reported by Africa CDC as of 2024-10-06. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has officially declared the ongoing Mpox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS), marking the first such declaration by the agency since its inception in 2017. This declaration, under Article 3, Paragraph F of the Africa CDC Statute, empowers the organization to lead and coordinate responses to significant health emergencies. The statute mandates Africa CDC to "coordinate and support Member States in health emergency responses, particularly those declared PHECS or Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), as well as health promotion and disease prevention through health systems strengthening, addressing communicable and non-communicable diseases, environmental health, and Neglected Tropical Diseases."
Based on currently available information, the spread of Mpox cases in DRC is attributed to two main outbreaks - spread of MPXV clade Ia in Equateur and other previously affected provinces of the country, and the spread of clade Ib MPXV in the provinces of North and South Kivu, as well as several clade Ib cases detected in Kinshasa. Current sequencing in the country is limited and clade distribution might be broader than what is currently known.
The report focuses on confirmed, probably, and suspected cases as defined by DRC working case definition published at https://africacdc.org/disease/monkeypox/. Note that the definitions may change.
Suspected cases:
A person with sudden onset of high fever followed by a vesiculopustular rash predominantly on the face and present on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet; OR presence of at least 5 smallpox-like scars.
OR
Any person with fever > 38.3 °C (101 F), severe headache, lymphadenopathy, back pain, myalgia, and severe weakness, followed 1-3 days later by a progressive rash that often begins on the face (more dense) and then spreads elsewhere on the body, including the soles of the feet and palms of the hands.
Confirmed cases:
Any case for which the clinical and epidemiological diagnosis of Mpox has been laboratory confirmed.
2. Situation in DRC
Since 2023-01-01, a total of 6040 laboratory confirmed cases, including 9936, has been reported in DRC. A significant number of suspected and probably Mpox cases that clinically compatible with Mpox remain untested due to limited diagnostic and thus never get confirmed. For this reason, we include suspected cases in this report.
This indicator should be interpreted with caution, as suspected and probable cases are recorded according to varying national and within-country case definitions.
Fig. 1: Weekly number of confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of Mpox in DRC.
Fig. 2: Weekly number of cases (confirmed, probable, and suspected) of Mpox by province in DRC.
Fig. 3: Weekly number of confirmed deaths due to Mpox in DRC.
Fig. 4: Weekly number of confirmed deaths due to Mpox by province in DRC.
Fig. 5: Cumulative number of confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of Mpox by province in DRC.
Fig. 6: Cumulative number of confirmed deaths due to Mpox by province in DRC.
3. Case Profile
Key features of cases from up to 2024-10-06 are summarized below:
Fig. 7: Age-sex distribution of confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of Mpox in DRC.
Fig. 8: Age-sex distribution of all cases of Mpox in DRC by province.
Fig. 9: Weekly number of confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of Mpox in DRC by age group.
4. Genomic Epidemiology (TBD)
5. Vaccines (TBD)
6. Testing (TBD)
