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

DOH logo with a close-up of a hand with monkeypox symptoms.

MANILA, Philippines — Mpox (formerly monkeypox) cases in the country increased to 14 with the detection of six more.

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said in a press conference on Monday that all 14 active cases have the milder MPXV Clade II infection. He also said that since 2022, the country has recorded 23 mpox cases, including the 14 patients logged since January this year.

On September 1, the DOH reported detecting three new cases of mpox which brought the total number of active cases this year to eight.

“Meron tayong 12 hanggang 37 years old, these cases are from the National Capital Region, Calabarzon, and Cagayan Valley,” Herbosa disclosed.

(We have 12 to 37 year olds and these cases are from the National Capital Region, Calabarzon, and Cagayan Valley.)

“Fourteen cases this year, which includes the 12-year-old,” DOH Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo added.

READ: Mpox testing free in gov’t hospitals, says DOH

Herbosa likewise revealed that of the total 23 mpox cases, nine already recovered. He stressed that the Philippines had zero fatalities due to mpox since 2022.

Herbosa again gave assurance that the government’s mpox response are in order, including prompt testing, contact tracing, and home care. He pointed out that government efforts against mpox “break chains of transmission.”

“Very manageable and there is no need to be scared, the DOH is on top of the situation,” Herbosa reiterated to assuage public fears on mpox.

He further explained that MPXV Clade II is “the milder variant of Mpox” and “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 said that while they anticipate mpox cases to rise due to the DOH’s active testing of individuals with symptoms, he clarified that “increasing case counts does not mean increasing infections.”

READ: DOH updates guidelines to keep public safe from mpox

“Mpox Clade II has always been around, with people getting it via close, intimate skin-to-skin contact. They have also been recovering, and there have been no deaths since,” the DOH chief noted in a separate statement released also on Monday.

No lockdown

Herbosa also said that even if the DOH’s detection of mpox cases increased, there will be “border control or community quarantine (lockdowns).

“We will not mandate face masks or face shields. The best prevention is frequent hand washing and hygienic practices,” he added.

“There is no added value to health for a public counting of cases. It only leads to anxiety and mental health problems. Surveillance, case finding, and community engagement is best handled by the DOH and local health authorities,” he likewise said in a bid to soothe people’s concerns and prevent panic among the public.

Herbosa further said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases “is being updated regularly, but will not be activated for now.”