Public Health and Professional Standards PS Mary Muthoni has confirmed the fourth case of Mpox in the country. The Ps said the latest case of Mpox is a truck driver from Mombasa who was en route to Rwanda. “He felt unwell on August 28 while passing through Gilgil and was unable to continue his journey,” Muthoni said on X.
She said the Gilgil Sub-County Rapid Response Team was immediately dispatched to access the case. “The patient was evacuated to Nakuru PGH Isolation Centre, where he is admitted in stable condition,” she noted.
Other cases were confirmed in Taita Taveta, Busia, and Nairobi. The National Public Health Laboratory has so far processed 90 samples, of which four turned out positive and two are pending confirmation.
The Ministry of Health has announced that Kenya has confirmed its third case of Mpox in Nairobi County. Health director general Patrick Amoth said the patient, a 30-year-old female had travelled to Uganda one week ago. He said that the patient is currently in stable condition undergoing management in an isolation unit in Nairobi.
“17 contacts remain under close observation and this positive outcome demonstrates our effective response and management of the disease,” Amoth said in a statement on Friday. He, however, said the second patient diagnosed with Mpox in Kenya has fully recovered and discharged from the Hospital.
Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa on August 23 confirmed that Kenya recorded its second case of Mpox. The case was confirmed after samples were taken from a male truck driver at the Malaba One Stop Border post in Busia who had exhibited signs of the disease.
The third confirmed case brings the total number of confirmed Mpox cases in the country to three. The earlier two cases were detected in Taita Taveta and Busia counties. Amoth said active surveillance for suspected cases is ongoing in the country to ensure the spread of the disease is controlled.
“Cumulatively, a total of 89 samples have been submitted to our laboratories for Mpox disease testing out of which 79 samples have tested negative for the disease while three samples have tested positive and the remaining seven samples are currently undergoing analysis,” he added.
Amoth said the Ministry has further screened a total of 582,847 travellers at 26 designated Ports of Entry across the country. “We wish to reassure the public that our healthcare facilities are fully prepared to diagnose and manage this disease and there is no need to panic,” Amoth added.
“To reduce stigma and prevent the spread of the disease, we shall continue to share important information through our official social media accounts, the press and other public health forums countrywide.”
Mpox is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV), a species of the genus Orthopoxvirus, family Poxviridae.
Two different clades exist clades I and II. Symptoms can include a rash, fever, and body aches, among others. It spreads from person to person or from exposure to infected animals or materials. Most people will recover within 2-4 weeks with appropriate care. Since 2022, person-to-person transmission has been sustained in a global outbreak
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