Monkeypox Outbreak: 55 Cases Recorded In Greater Accra With One Person Dead

• Greater Accra Region has recorded 55 cases of the monkeypox virus with one person dying from the sickness
• According to reports, 33 percent of all monkeypox cases in Ghana are found in the region
• Greater Accra Region public health director Dr Charity Sarpong disclosed these at this year's meeting of members of the regional coordinating council

It has emerged that some 55 people have been infected with the dangerous monkeypox virus in the Greater Accra metropolis with one death.

According to reports, the Greater Accra Region public health director Dr Charity Sarpong disclosed the monkeypox situation in the capital during the 2022 annual meeting of the regional coordinating council.

“33 percent of the cases were recorded in the Accra metropolis,” report by Ghanaweb quoted Dr Sarpong.

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Experts Urge Ghanaians Not To Panic Over Monkeypox And Marburg Outbreaks

YEN.com.gh reported in August this year when both monkeypox and Marburg broke out in Ghana, two health experts moved to allayed fears that the recent outbreaks will escalate.

Virologist Dr Augustina Sylverken and GHS official Rexford King James have said there is no cause for alarm.

The two diseases had broken out in parts of the country with one person each dying from both Marburg and Monkeypox at the time.

Monkeypox Facts

Monkeypox has been associated with sporadic outbreaks over the past decades. The most recent outbreak is associated with the less virulent West African clade of the virus, and manifests most commonly as macular pustular lesions at areas exposed to the virus.

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In the current outbreak primarily in men who have intercourse with men and their close contacts, the disease often manifests as painful lesions in the region of their reproductive organ that can take two to three weeks to completely heal.

These lesions may have very high titers of infectious virus present, and until the lesions completely heal over these individuals can potentially spread the virus further.

Monkeypox was first detected in humans in 1970 in Africa and since then most cases have been reported in rural and rainforest areas. For decades, only a few cases were reported sporadically.

Then in 2017, there was a sudden spike, with more than 2,800 suspected cases reported in five countries. This surge continued, peaking in 2020 with more than 6,300 suspected cases, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo accounting for 95% of the total. The numbers then dropped in 2021 to around 3,200 suspected cases.

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The reasons for these spikes are not fully known but may be due to deforestation and the encroachment of people into the habitats of Monkeypox animal hosts.

Source: YEN.com.gh