Zimbabwe reports first two mpox cases, after Zambia week before

Zimbabwe has confirmed its first two cases of mpox, days after Zambia reported its first case. The cases, whose variants have not been identified, were detected in people who were from or had travelled to Tanzania and South Africa.

The cases in Zimbabwe's capital, Harare and in the southern town of Mberengwa, were detected in a child who developed symptoms last month after travelling to South Africa, and in a 24-year-old man who became ill after traveling to Tanzania, the health ministry said in a statement, without identifying which variants had been recorded.

Both patients are recovering and contact tracing is underway, said the statement signed by Health Minister Douglas Mombeshora, who said the “situation is under control” and urged the public “not to panic”.

Neighbouring Zambia reported its first case last week, without disclosing the strain.

The health ministry reported Thursday that it had identified mpox in a 32-year-old Tanzanian man who arrived in Zambia in early September who developed symptoms in early October.

"Given the patient's extensive travel history and interactions at multiple points in Zambia, there is heightened risk of local transmission and potential cross-border spread," the health ministry said.

The World Health Organization declared mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years in August, following an outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has spread to neighbouring countries.

Nearly 30,000 suspected mpox cases have been reported in Africa so far this year, most of them in central but also in West Africa, with a few cases reported in Europe and Asia.

More than 800 people have died of the virus which typically causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions, is usually mild, but it can be deadly, especially in children.

(with Reuters)