SIX additional mpox cases have been detected, bringing the total to 23, Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said yesterday.
Of the 23, 14 are active cases. All cases belong to the milder mpox variant.
“All confirmed cases belong to Clade II variants, the old variant. There has been no detected Clade I case so far,” said Herbosa said in a press conference.
Herbosa also said the cases are not “epidemiologically linked.”
“Each case that we found is independent. All their close contacts are negative,” he said.
Herbosa said the six new cases are all males, and had sexual contacts, including those with anonymous partners.
Four of the new cases are from the National Capital Region while the two others were from Calabarzon and Cagayan Valley.
Herbosa said all cases also had mild symptoms.
“None of them were hospitalized and are serious. It’s a self-limiting disease,” he said.
Herbosa said the increase in the number of mpox patients should be expected as the DOH has enhanced testing of suspected cases.
“There is no cause for alarm for mpox. If you look at the numbers, they went up because we increased our testing,” he said.
Herbosa said government is firmly on top of the situation despite the declaration by the World Health Organization of mpox as a public health emergency of international concern.
Proof of this, he said, is the fact that the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) has yet to be activated.
“Even if mpox cases reach 100, there is no need to activate the IATF since the measures will remain the same. The risk is low. The risk to die from mpox is low. The risk to infect others is low,” said Herbosa.
“This is very manageable. There is no need to be scared. The DOH is on top of the situation,” he added.
Herbosa also said there is also no need to revive policies put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This disease can easily be controlled. It won’t spread easily. No mask mandate. No border control. No lockdown. These measures won’t prevent mpox; handwashing frequently will,” he said.
RESPONSE PREPARATIONS
Nevertheless, the health department is preparing for the mpox response, and has allocated an initial funding of P156 million.
Herbosa said the Department of Health established the Mpox Task Force on August 27, with the mandate to lead the national response against mpox.
He said they are also drafting a national action plan against mpox, which focuses on controlling the spread of the virus and preventing severe outcome, such as death or hospitalization.
Herbosa noted nine cases detected from 2022 to 2023 have all recovered.
Herbosa also said the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) has been designated as the national referral laboratory for mpox testing and genome sequencing.
“You can have your samples taken in any health facility but the testing is with the RITM,” he said.
He said all mpox testing by other government hospitals will be offered for free until announced otherwise.
“We encourage people to get tested. Many who got tested found out it wasn’t mpox but other viral illnesses,” he said.
He there are around 1,600 test kits available, with 200 having been used.
“We are conducting a nationwide inventory of the PCR test kits and we are scaling up the testing in other hospitals and laboratories,” said Herbosa.
He said they will also conduct training seminars for health personnel for mpox testing.
“They should undergo training so that other hospitals can also do the testing,” he said.
