SAns must safeguard themselves against mpox by being responsible - healthcare expert

JOHANNESBURG - A healthcare expert has urged South Africans to safeguard themselves against the mpox virus by being responsible.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the virus a global public health emergency on Wednesday in a bid to coordinate a united response to fast-track mpox vaccines on the continent.

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South Africa has recorded 24 mpox cases and three deaths since May 2024.

Public health lawyer Safura Abdool Karim outlined how South Africans can avoid contracting the virus: "The most important thing is that South Africans adhere to the requirements that are going to be imposed when mpox is declared a notifiable condition. 

"This means that if you are not feeling well, if you are exhibiting the symptoms of having mpox, and feeling lesions and things like that, that you go and get tested, go and see your doctor, and that your doctor confirms the diagnosis, which will then get reported.”