Brazil recorded, throughout 2024, 1,578 confirmed cases of mpox. The Ministry of Health’s monitoring panel also counts 60 probable cases and 434 suspected cases of the disease in the country.
The majority of infections are concentrated in the 30 to 39 age group (751 cases), followed by the 18 to 29 age group (496 cases) and the 40 to 49 age group (275 cases). Men account for 81% of confirmed cases, with 70% reporting having sex with men.
Another section released by the ministry’s monitoring panel is race and color. The data shows that 46% of mpox cases in Brazil are concentrated among white people; 29%, among browns; and 11%, among blacks.
The Southeast leads the ranking of regions with the most infections, with 1,269 cases. Next are Northeast (137), Central-West (97), North (712) and South (61). Among the states, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro appear at the forefront, with 866 and 320 cases, respectively.
Global emergency
The World Health Organization (WHO) called an emergency committee meeting for next Friday (22) to reassess the mpox scenario in the world. In August, the same committee declared the disease a public health emergency of international importance.
Data from the entity reveals that, from January 1, 2022, to September 30 of this year, 109,699 cases of mpox were confirmed worldwide, in addition to 236 deaths. At least 123 countries have reported cases of the disease.
The African continent accounts for the majority of infections – 11,148 confirmed cases between January 1 and November 3, 2024, in addition to 46,794 suspected cases. Africa also accounts for 53 confirmed deaths from mpox and 1,081 suspected deaths.
The Democratic Republic of Congo continues to lead the ranking, with 8,662 confirmed cases, 39,501 suspected cases, 43 confirmed deaths and 1,073 suspected deaths from the disease. Next come Burundi, with 1,726 confirmed cases, and Uganda, with 359 confirmed cases.
New variant
According to the WHO, three new countries confirmed imported cases of variant 1b: the United Kingdom, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Furthermore, for the first time, local transmission of the new variant was detected outside Africa – in the United Kingdom, three people were infected by a traveler.
