WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has called on countries of the Americas, including the Caribbean, to strengthen surveillance including laboratory detection and genomic sequencing of confirmed cases following the identification of a new variant of the Mpox virus, Clade I (Clade Ib), in the sub-Saharan African region.

In an epidemiological alert, PAHO said that while the new variant has not been reported in the Americas, countries should remain alert to possible imported cases.

On Friday, PAHO said the new variant is associated with sustained transmission, as well as the occurrence of cases in a wider range of age groups than during previous outbreaks, including children.

It is estimated to have emerged in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in September 2023 and is associated with a significant increase in cases in the country, PAHO said.

Mpox is a viral illness caused by the monkeypox virus, a species of the genus Orthopoxvirus.

PAHO said two different clades exist — clade I and clade II. Symptoms include fever, intense headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy, swollen lymph nodes, and skin rash or mucosal lesions.

The rash tends to be concentrated on the face, palms of the hands, and soles of the feet, but can also be found on the mouth, anogenital region and eyes and symptoms typically last between two to four weeks and go away on their own without treatment.

From the beginning of 2024 to July 26, 2024, PAHO said the Democratic Republic of Congo Ministry of Health reported 14,479 cases of Mpox, and 455 deaths.

According to the report, “the number of cases reported in the first six months of this year match the number reported in all of last year”.

Cases of the new variant have also been reported in Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya.

It said testing is also underway in Burundi to determine whether reported cases in that country are also due to the new variant.

As a result of the hike in cases, on August 7, the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that he would convene a panel of experts to advise him on whether the expanding outbreak constitutes a global health emergency.

While no cases of the new variant have been reported in the Americas, PAHO recommended that countries of the Americas “remain vigilant to the possibility of introduction in the region”.

The epidemiological alert urges country health authorities “to continue surveillance based on laboratory testing and timely reporting of confirmed and probable cases”.

Genomic surveillance is also key to determining the circulating clades and their evolution.

PAHO also recommended the dissemination of public health messages to inform and educate target populations, including health personnel and populations with the highest prevalence of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), primarily, though not exclusively, men who have sex with men, to improve early recognition of signs and symptoms.