The first rapid diagnostic test for Mpox has been cleared by the WHO, an important milestone in reining in the worldwide outbreak of the virus. This PCR test will be able to pick up Mpox DNA from skin lesion swabs, allowing physicians to deliver results much faster than they have previously, which would need to be sent off to a lab, with long delays.
Mpox, formerly monkeypox, is an epidemic in Africa and has reported more than 30,000 suspected cases this year. But less than half of them have been tested , partly because testing facilities are too small. The new test could help overcome these problems by enabling faster diagnosis in areas where healthcare systems are not fully accessible.
The WHO assistant director-general Yukiko Nakatani referred to the news as an “important achievement,” remarking that it was crucial to increase access to quality medical supplies to halt the virus in developing regions.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which has seen the most cases of Mpox, is about to get vaccinated. In the DRC, at least 635 people have died of the virus this year, meaning better testing and prevention is a matter of course.
In August 2024, the WHO declared Mpox a global public health crisis after cases revived in DR Congo and spread to neighboring Burundi, Uganda, and Rwanda. Some Western countries have even shipped Mpox vaccines to Africa, though they need more. Rwanda — the first African nation to be vaccinated with Mpox vaccines — will receive 5,000 more doses; Nigeria’s program begins next week. DRC secured 200,000 doses from the European Commission and allocated them to frontline healthcare workers and those in close quarters with infected patients.
Work CitedMuia, Wycliffe. “WHO Approves First Mpox Test for Quick Diagnosis.” BBC News, 4 Oct. 2024, www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2436p21j90o.
