Gabon records first mpox case

Illustration shows test tubes with "Mpox virus positive" label

A test tube labelled "Mpox virus positive" is held in this illustration taken August 20, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

Source: REUTERS

Gabon has registered its first case of mpox, the health ministry said in a statement that did not specify which variant of the viral infection was recorded.

The World Health Organization has declared mpox a global public health emergency, after an outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo spread to neighbouring countries and a new form of the virus, clade Ib, triggered concerns about speed of transmission.

The Gabonese ministry said it had officially declared its first case of mpox on Thursday, when a 30-year-old man tested positive after returning from Uganda and developing a fever and skin lesions consistent with the disease.

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This article was produced by Reuters news agency. It has not been edited by Global South World.

By Reuters