Health workers in Sierra Leone see surge in mpox cases

Sierra Leone is facing an increase in recorded mpox infections, with 177 new cases reported in recent days, a health ministry official told AFP.

The West African country, which in January declared a public health emergency to combat mpox, has sent health teams to carry out screening operations in households of people suspected to be infected with the virus.

Amanda Clemens, social mobilization coordinator for the health ministry, said Saturday that health workers had recorded a total of 177 cases over the Friday-Saturday period.

Sierra Leone has recorded 763 cases of mpox since January with six deaths and 282 recoveries, according to data from the National Public Health Agency published Saturday.

Freetown, the capital, has the highest number of detected mpox cases since the health emergency was declared. As a result, the government has opened four treatment centers in the capital since February.

“Misinformation and fear surrounding mpox continue to prevent some people from seeking medical assistance and some individuals were not tested early enough and may have unknowingly spread the disease before their diagnosis,” said Sallu Lansana, part of the health ministry’s vaccination team.

The country started vaccinating frontline health care workers and high-risk individuals and children from age 12 in early April, after securing 61,300 doses from the World Health Organization (WHO) and development partners.

“Over 1,000 people have been vaccinated with the majority being health workers and many of whom are women,” said Desmond Maada Kangbai, who leads the health ministry’s vaccination program.

Mpox is caused by a virus from the same family as smallpox, manifesting in a high fever and skin lesions, called vesicles.

First identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970, the disease had generally been confined to a dozen African countries.

But in 2022, it began to spread more widely, reaching developed countries where the virus had never previously circulated.

The WHO declared its highest level of alert in 2024.

A decade ago, Sierra Leone was one of the countries worst affected by an Ebola epidemic which between 2014 and 2016 killed about 4,000 people, including nearly 7% of health workers.

© 2025 AFP

Sierra Leone is facing an increase in recorded mpox infections, with 177 new cases reported in recent days, a health ministry official told AFP.

The West African country, which in January declared a public health emergency to combat mpox, has sent health teams to carry out screening operations in households of people suspected to be infected with the virus.

Amanda Clemens, social mobilization coordinator for the health ministry, said Saturday that health workers had recorded a total of 177 cases over the Friday-Saturday period.

Sierra Leone has recorded 763 cases of mpox since January with six deaths and 282 recoveries, according to data from the National Public Health Agency published Saturday.

Freetown, the capital, has the highest number of detected mpox cases since the health emergency was declared. As a result, the government has opened four treatment centers in the capital since February.

“Misinformation and fear surrounding mpox continue to prevent some people from seeking medical assistance and some individuals were not tested early enough and may have unknowingly spread the disease before their diagnosis,” said Sallu Lansana, part of the health ministry’s vaccination team.

The country started vaccinating frontline health care workers and high-risk individuals and children from age 12 in early April, after securing 61,300 doses from the World Health Organization (WHO) and development partners.

“Over 1,000 people have been vaccinated with the majority being health workers and many of whom are women,” said Desmond Maada Kangbai, who leads the health ministry’s vaccination program.

Mpox is caused by a virus from the same family as smallpox, manifesting in a high fever and skin lesions, called vesicles.

First identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970, the disease had generally been confined to a dozen African countries.

But in 2022, it began to spread more widely, reaching developed countries where the virus had never previously circulated.

The WHO declared its highest level of alert in 2024.

A decade ago, Sierra Leone was one of the countries worst affected by an Ebola epidemic which between 2014 and 2016 killed about 4,000 people, including nearly 7% of health workers.

© 2025 AFP