Confirmed mpox cases for 2024 now at 15 — DOH

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday said that the total confirmed cases of mpox (formerly monkeypox) in the country for the current year are now 15 after logging one new case.

In a Metro Manila Council meeting, DOH Undersecretary Gloria Balboa said that 14 cases are still active and in home isolation.

“‘Yong 15th case, sa NCR [National Capital Region] ‘yon. Nadetect siya noong the other day [Monday]. Syempre kasi sinasubmit sa RITM [Research Institute for Tropical Medicine] and ang maganda ngayon, two to three days lumalabas na ‘yong result,” Balboa said.

(The 15th case comes from the NCR. It was detected the other day [Monday]. It was submitted to RITM and what’s impressive now is that the results come out within two to three days.)

“Mas mabilis, hindi kagaya ng Covid-19 na medyo matagal at syempre hindi pa gano’n capacitated ‘yong ating mga laboratories but this time, bumilis na po ‘yong capability ng ating laboratories,” she added.

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(It is faster unlike during the Covid-19 when it is much slower and the laboratories were not that much capacitated but this time, the capability of our laboratories is improving.)

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Further, based on the DOH’s presentation on the profile of confirmed cases, 14 cases are males while one is female. 11 cases came from NCR, while three originated from Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon), and one from Cagayan Valley.

READ: Mpox cases rise to 14, but it doesn’t mean infection spreading – DOH

Balboa said that mpox can be transmitted through skin-to-skin contact like sexual contact, hugging, and kissing. It can also be contacted through infected beddings, clothings, utensils, and the like.

All the confirmed cases in the country have the milder MPXV Clade II infection. Health secretary Teodoro Herbosa on Monday said that “unlike COVID-19 which is airborne, Mpox Clade II is transmitted by close and intimate, skin-to-skin contact and through objects touched by patients with active skin lesions.”

Herbosa on Monday also said that there will be no lockdown and mandate for face masks or face shields. He emphasized that “[s]urveillance, case finding, and community engagement is best handled by the DOH and local health authorities

In the council meeting, Metro Manila Development Authority Chairman Don Artes said that the mayors of the cities in Metro Manila will launch an information campaign on mpox.

“‘Yun naman pong sa mpox, ang amin pong commitment sa NCR ay information campaign. Maglaunch ng massive information campaign ang mga mayor. In fact, sinabi na po ni Mayor Zamora na magcoconduct siya ng town hall meetings,” Artes said.

(For mpox, our commitment in NCR is an information campaign. The mayors will launch a massive information campaign. In fact, Mayor [Francis] Zamora said that he will conduct town hall meetings.)

READ: DOH updates guidelines to keep public safe from mpox

“Gano’n din po siguro ‘yong ibang lokal na pamahalaan para po sabihin kung ano ‘yong mpox, preventive measures na pwedeng gawin para iwasan ito kaagad,” he added.

(It may also be the case for other local governments to shed light on what mpox is and the preventive measures anyone can take to avoid this.)

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