PHL active mpox now at 8
THE PHILIPPINES on Sunday posted three more monkeypox (mpox) cases, bringing the total number of active cases in the country to eight, according to its health agency.
Two of the three new cases were from Metro Manila, while one was from Calabarzon, the Department of Health (DoH) said in a statement.
All the new patients were infected with a mild Clade II variant and not the potentially more deadly variant that sparked global concern.
“Findings indicate that the transmission dynamics of Clade II still hold true: close, intimate, and skin-to-skin contact,” DoH said.
It said the two patients from Metro Manila had “anonymous sexual encounters with more than one partner,” while the patient from Calabarzon “had close, skin to skin sexual contact with another person who had skin symptoms.”
An outbreak in African countries prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a global health emergency in mid-August, and launch a $135-million response.
The Philippine health department last month said it had already signified intent to the WHO to get access to smallpox vaccines. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza