The Covid-19 epidemic is not yet over but the world is now back to life as usual as if victory has been achieved. With Covid-19 now just a memory in the minds of the public, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the outbreak of Mpox or its old name monkey pox as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC).
Four years of Covid-19 or at that time still using the name SAR-CoV-2, announced as PHEIC before the seriousness of this epidemic was known to many and caused millions of deaths. Mpox is now categorized as a PHEIC after an increase in infections and deaths in the African continent, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It now has the risk of spreading not only in the African continent but also to other continents.
This is the second time Mpox has been categorized as a PHEIC with it first being heard in 2022 when it was detected including in Malaysia before being released again in May 2023. It is now back to being a PHEIC after the number of cases and deaths in 2024 exceeded the total of 5,600 cases and 537 deaths throughout 2023.
The Mpox outbreak was first detected in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970 when it spread from monkeys to humans. So far, Mpox has not received much attention from the world because it is endemic in Africa. A vaccine against the Mbox outbreak has already been developed.