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Sierra Leone has reported its first confirmed case of mpox for the reason that world’s highest alert degree for the possibly lethal viral illness was raised final yr.
“The patient is a 27-year-old man from the rural district of the Western Zone,” close to the capital Freetown, the Nationwide Public Well being Company said in a social media submit.
“Health teams are actively tracing and investigating to identify potential exposed persons and to prevent further spread,” it stated.
The company added checks had confirmed the case on January 10 however didn’t specify the variant affecting the affected person.
Mpox is brought on by a virus from the identical household because the smallpox, manifesting itself via a excessive fever and pores and skin lesions, referred to as vesicles.
The World Well being Group declared its highest alert degree in 2024.
Sierra Leonean well being authorities say they swiftly activated their response, putting the affected person in remoted care.
His contacts might be monitored for 21 days with surveillance stepped up in areas he visited.
A public consciousness marketing campaign has been launched and well being employees are being issued with protecting gear and educated in prevention strategies.
Sierra Leone was one of many international locations hardest hit by Ebola, which ravaged west Africa a decade in the past in an epidemic killing some 4,000 individuals, together with almost seven % of well being employees, between 2014 and 2016.
© 2025 AFP
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Sierra Leone stories first case of mpox (2025, January 11)
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