Argentina’s health authorities have notified border officials of the signs of mpox, but specific checks are not yet being carried out. Five people have tested positive for mpox in Argentina this year to date, none of whom suffered from a more dangerous new variant circulating in some African countries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global public health emergency amid a spike in cases of the disease in African countries on Wednesday. The alert followed the detection of the new, more dangerous clade 1b variant of the disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. The new variant is not present in the Americas.
A WHO communiqué added that this clade appeared to be spreading “mainly through sexual networks.”
“It’s clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
In a press release, Argentina’s Health Ministry said it was “prioritizing epidemiological surveillance actions” to enable it to detect, diagnose, and care for mpox patients, as well as implementing isolation measures and tracing the contacts of possible cases. Authorities have been notified of signs of the disease, but specific checks to look for suspected cases are not yet being carried out. Flights and ships from Africa are being evaluated with special attention.
According to epidemiological data from Argentina’s Health Ministry, three of the five cases reported this year have been confirmed in the last four weeks. Of those cases, three had recently traveled abroad or had contact with travelers, while one did not. The final case is still being analyzed.
Argentina has seen no fatal cases in 2024 so far, but the Health Ministry has confirmed that 39 suspected cases are under investigation. Of those, 24 tested negative and 10 more are awaiting confirmation.
Mpox symptoms
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is an infectious viral disease that can occur in humans and other animals. Symptoms include fever, swollen lymph nodes, and a rash that forms blisters and then crusts over. This can affect the genital and anal areas, as well as the hands and torso.
The disease can be spread by close physical contact, such as through skin or facial contact and sexual activity, as well as via contact with contaminated items. Pregnant people can also pass the disease to their fetus.
There is no vaccine available in Argentina. The Health Ministry recommends avoiding close contact with people with confirmed mpox diagnoses, or who are experiencing symptoms of the disease.
Those who may have been in contact with a person confirmed to have mpox should watch out for symptoms, which can appear up to 21 days after they were exposed. They should also avoid touching others — especially pregnant people, children, and immunocompromised persons — and use their own towels.
Patients with a confirmed diagnosis should remain in isolation until all scabs have fallen off and consult health experts for clinical studies and an evaluation of the circumstances in which they got the disease.
This is the second time in two years that an mpox outbreak has been declared an international health emergency. The WHO also declared what is known as a “public health emergency of international concern” in July 2022, when the disease spread rapidly via sexual contact across a range of countries where the virus had not been seen before.
Caused by an Orthopoxvirus, mpox was first detected in humans in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970. It was first isolated and identified in 1959, when monkeys shipped from Singapore to a Denmark laboratory fell ill. The disease is considered endemic to countries in Central and West Africa.
The first confirmed case in Argentina was in 2022. That year, 1,025 people in the country fell ill with the disease and two died. In 2023, a total of 124 cases were reported.