The Ministry of Health (MoH) has announced that no new Mpox cases have been reported in the country.
In a statement on Tuesday, August 6, the ministry said the patient who was reported having symptoms of the disease at the Taita Taveta border point has recovered.
According to the ministry, the patient was isolated at Taveta Sub-County Hospital where the clinicians suspected the disease to be either chickenpox or Mpox.
“Skin lesion samples were taken. Results from the National Public Health Laboratories detected Mpox on 29th July 2024.
“This was validated by other reference laboratories in the national laboratory network. The patient has recovered,” read the statement in part.
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MoH noted that it has begun identifying all persons who had been in close contact with the patient.
The ministry said it is tracing all his close contacts at his workplace, at the hospital where he was admitted, and along his travel routes.
“However, due to the infectiousness of Mpox and as per international guidelines for mpox response, the Ministry of Health and the County Health Department of Taita Taveta began identifying all persons that had been in close contact with the patient,” MoH stated.
At the same time, the ministry said it has deployed a rapid response team to support the affected counties with detailed investigations.
The ministry also mentioned it has activated the Public Health Emergency Operation Centres across the country and incident management teams established to coordinate response activities.
“All counties have been advised to sensitize the public on the outbreak and the requisite preventive measures necessary to avoid contracting the disease and also the steps to take when they contract the disease including frequent hand washing with soap and water or hand sanitizer, seeking treatment early when infected and avoiding close contact with sick persons,” the Ministry added.
Further, the ministry asked members of the public to report suspected Mpox cases through its hotline number.
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