Alert
Residents of Nyeri have been advised to seek prompt medical attention in case they exhibit symptoms similar to those of monkeypox virus (Orthopoxvirus monkeypox).
County Health CEC Dr Joseph Maina Kiragu says they are working closely with local administrators to ensure the public is adequately sensitized on how to keep the highly infectious disease at bay. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), most symptoms of the disease are similar to those of flu and can also include pus-filled skin lesions.
Within one to three days of infection, a patient will develop a facial rash that spreads to other parts of the body including hands, feet, chest, face, mouth and genitals. But Dr Kiragu has nevertheless said members of the public need not be afraid since measures have been put in place to address any such incidence in the county.
“We are on the lookout. We have alerted our public health officers and also have a team that is leading in surveilling the whole county. This team has officers in the whole county,” he has told KNA.
“The idea is (to inform suspected patients) to report to the nearest health institution, may it be a dispensary or health center and then the hospital will pick it from there. We have tests which we are doing locally but others have to go to Nairobi to the National Public Health Laboratory,” he stated.
Three weeks ago, the county was on high alert after a suspected case for the virulent diseases was reported in the area after a patient who had arrived from Kiambu started exhibiting monkey pox like symptoms. But samples taken from the suspected patient later turned out negative for the disease after they were subjected to laboratory tests in Nairobi.
Dr Kiragu has however warned the public against lowering their guard in the wake of the disease which has been described as a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO).
“We are working with ward administrators across the county in ensuring the public is kept on the knowhow in regard to what they need to do to remain safe from this disease. Today (Tuesday) we might release another official circular in regard to the disease since the first one(circular) was for internal consultation. We want to handle it (the health scare) slowly and at an advisory level to avoid creating unnecessary alarm to members of the public,” he added.
Yesterday the government said it hopes to receive at least 2 million monkey pox jabs from a Danish pharmaceutical company to inoculate Kenyans against the disease which has infected a total of 99,176 people and led to 208 fatalities globally since January 2022.
During yesterday’s press briefing, Health Director-General Patrick Amoth said Kenya will receive the doses from Nordic company by December this year. Dr Amoth however stated that the State will only avail the doses to the most vulnerable groups akin to what happened during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“At one point we shall bring back vaccines in the country. You heard when the Africa Center for Diseases Control and Prevention declared the effects, they said Africa requires 10 million doses of vaccine. We are assured by the Nordic manufacturer that by the end of the year, we will have about two million doses,” he said.
“But the vaccine will not be for everybody because of the scarcity in terms of availability so we will prioritize the population to be put at the forefront for vaccine administration,” he added. Monkeypox is a viral disease which is mainly spread through contact with an infected person, contaminated personal items or surfaces or through sexual contact.
Those at increased risk of the disease may require hospitalization or treatment with antivirals. Groups at increased risk from the disease include infants and young children, pregnant women, the elderly and severely immunocompromised persons.
Confirmed cases should be instructed to isolate until their rash heals completely, which indicates the end of infectiousness. Infected persons should remain in their own rooms and use designated household items which should not be shared with other household members to avoid spread of the disease.
Kenya has reported only one case of the disease, a person who travelled from Kampala in Uganda to Mombasa, then to Rwanda via Tanzania through Taita Taveta one-stop border point.