Results from samples taken from 24 people suspected to have Monkey Pox have been released.
According to Pontiano Kaleebu, the director of the Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), all the samples tested negative for Monkey Pox. This means that Uganda is still free from the disease.
“The samples from the 24 individuals suspected to have monkey pox in Uganda all tested negative,” said Kaleebu.
“There is no confirmed monkey pox case in Uganda at the moment.”
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Monkeypox is a viral zoonosis, meaning a virus transmitted to humans from animals, with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients, although it is clinically less severe.
WHO further explains that with the eradication of smallpox in 1980 and subsequent cessation of smallpox vaccination, monkeypox has emerged as the most important orthopoxvirus for public health.
The world’s health body further notes that Monkeypox primarily occurs in central and west Africa, often in proximity to tropical rainforests, and has been increasingly appearing in urban areas, and that animal hosts include a range of rodents and non-human primates.
Meanwhile, the UVRI boss also gave an update on the Covid19 situation in the country. “SARS-COV-2 surveillance remains an important activity. The Omicron variant continues to be dominant especially BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2.31 and BA.5. We have also reported recombinants within Omicron and Delta,” he noted.
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