(Bloomberg) -- The World Health Organization will convene a panel of advisers to help determine whether a deadly outbreak of mpox in Central Africa constitutes an international emergency.
Children and adolescents have been most affected in the outbreak that comes from a mutated strain that appears to be fast-spreading and has been detected in at least six African countries. There have been almost 500 deaths related to the infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo alone, where the variant was first reported less than a year ago.
Countries and drugmakers are working to facilitate “equitable access to vaccines therapeutics, diagnostics, and other tools,” said WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on a conference call. Partners including Japan, the US and the European Union along with manufacturers are working on vaccine donations, he said.
The panel will advise Tedros on whether to declare a public health emergency of international concern. The declaration would designate the outbreak as an extraordinary event carrying public health risk that may require a coordinated response. It can be used to encourage nations to cooperate on countermeasures, while letting the agency recommend steps such as travel advisories.
(Updates with WHO comment in third paragraph)
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