Panic has emerged following Ministry of Health revelations that suspected cases of M-pox in the country have reached 91 against four confirmed ones.
Ministry of Health Principal Secretary Samson Mndolo said all the four confirmed cases are males and that three of them are in Lilongwe while the other is from Mangochi.
He said the ministry is encouraging isolation of cases to prevent further spread of M-pox, previously known as Monkeypox.
Said Mndolo: “We have increased case finding, contact tracing and monitoring of these contacts in order to identify suspected cases early and have them isolated to
prevent further spread. M-pox is a contagious disease, which can cause severe disease and in some cases death.”
He said M-pox signs and symptoms include skin rash, fever, sore throat, headache, back pain, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes as well as weakness.
Mndolo al so advi sed people to avoid skin-to-skin interactions and sharing items with infected persons.
He further urged the public to practice personal hygiene to avoid contracting the disease.
Public Health Institute of Malawi case update shows that as of April 19, there were 84 total suspected cases and Blantyre topped the list with 25 suspects followed by Lilongwe with 21.
On the other hand, Dowa recorded six suspected cases, Mzimba had five while Rumphi had four.
Dedza, Karonga, Mchinji, Mwanza, Neno Ntchisi and Salima districts recorded two suspected cases each while Kasungu, Machinga, Mangochi, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Ntcheu and Zomba districts recorded one suspected case each.
In an interview yesterday, Malawi University of Science and Technology senior lecturer and medical virologist Dr. Gama Bandawe said there is a lot that needs to be done to prevent the further spread of M-pox.
He said the risk is always higher in institutions such as schools and urged the ministry to collaborate with ministries of Basic and Secondary Education and Higher Education to devise good ways of preventing the spread of M-pox among students.
Said Bandawe: “Students should avoid sharing utensils. Some of them, particularly in higher learning institutions sometimes even share clothes and beddings which puts them at high risk of contracting M-pox.
“Of course, the M-pox fatality rate is very low, but it is a very painful and very inconvenient disease. So, let’s remain alert.”
M-pox is a viral illness caused by the monkeypox virus, a species of the genus orthopoxvirus.
Common symptoms of M-pox are a skin rash or mucosal lesions which can last two to four weeks accompanied by fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.
M-pox can be transmitted through close contact w ith someone who has M-pox, with contaminated mater i a l s , o r with infected animals. During pregnancy, the virus may be passed to the foetus or to the newborn during or after birth.
M-pox is treated with supportive care for symptoms such as pain and fever, with close attention to nutrition, hydration, skin care, prevention of secondary infections and treatment of co-infections, including HIV where present.
