Monrovia — The National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) has confirmed an active case of the Mpox Virus in Sinoe County, refuting recent media reports that suggested there were at least four active cases of the disease in the county.
Addressing a major news conference on Monday, September 2, 2024, in Congo Town, the Director General of NPHIL, Dr. Dougbeh Chris Nyan, clarified that at no time did any of the country's health teams provide such information to the media. He urged media practitioners to seek clarity on critical health matters before releasing reports.
"We have one case, and that case is active, confirmed, managed, and being treated. No deaths have occurred so far, and this effort seeks to prevent the spread of the virus to neighboring counties," the NPHIL boss stated.
He explained that the Sinoe County Health Team initially reported eight suspected cases of Monkeypox. However, following thorough laboratory testing, health authorities established that only one of the cases, a seven-year-old girl, was confirmed positive for the Mpox Virus.
Dr. Nyan stated that this confirmed active case is the only official Mpox Virus case in Liberia following the global declarations of the virus by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
"Out of the eight cases, one came out positive, and in the scope of the outbreak, this is the first official case in Liberia since the global declarations by the WHO and Africa CDC," Dr. Nyan emphasized.
The NPHIL director further highlighted the distinction between a suspected case and a confirmed case. "A case is medically considered confirmed or suspected based on its condition. When the symptoms are both internal and external, and the person begins to experience a high temperature and fever, it is considered a suspected case."
He added that a case is confirmed as active only after laboratory testing, which will establish the actual status of the person. This procedure was followed before confirming the one active case of the seven-year-old girl in Sinoe County.
"When we learned about the reports of an outbreak and four confirmed cases in Sinoe County, we were shocked because we know how proactive our county health team has been. Those reports are misleading and erroneous; our county health officers did not confirm such information," Dr. Nyan said.
The Executive Director of NPHIL announced that the active case and the seven suspected cases have been isolated and are being clinically monitored to prevent further spread of the virus. "When the person who has tested positive is well treated by the health team, the case is no longer considered active."
The public health expert also recounted that in the last six months, Liberia recorded six cases of Mpox, which were detected before the international declarations were made by the Africa CDC and WHO.
He said that following the detection of those six cases, NPHIL immediately engaged the National Port Authority, the Roberts International Airport, and other local border points to assess response capacity. Dr. Nyan revealed that NPHIL has since assigned health officers to those areas in the interest of public safety.
At the same time, the Director General informed the news conference that the institution, through its health team, had collected samples from individuals who had contact with the confirmed case. He disclosed that the mother of the child has also been taken to the isolated unit for clinical observation, while the team is tracing all other contacts that both the confirmed and suspected cases may have had in Sinoe County.
"Our team is tracing others who were in contact with the confirmed case. The immediate contacts are the immediate family. The mother is showing symptoms of Monkeypox, as reported by the health team in the area, and three to four other family members are said to have come into contact with the case. NPHIL is tracing those contacts as well," Dr. Nyan revealed.
Additionally, Dr. Nyan said the immediate focus of the national government, through NPHIL and the Ministry of Health, is on Liberia's neighboring countries, including Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Rwanda, and the Far East of Africa. He noted that many Liberian students study in Rwanda, and as such, the frequent global movement of people needs urgent attention.
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"The country should play a major role in protecting its citizens and other nationals residing in Liberia, including our interactions with the regional body," he stressed.
Dr. Nyan also urged the public not to panic as the situation is being properly and collectively managed by the Ministry of Health and the National Public Health Institute of Liberia, noting that the country's health authorities remain committed to proactively addressing these health matters.
In consultation with the Minister of Health, the NPHIL boss announced the activation of the National Incident Management System as the second step to tackle the virus. According to him, this system will nationally coordinate the government's response to these health issues.
He noted that while NPHIL is doing everything possible to supply the health teams with the necessary logistics across the country, the institution currently lacks adequate gowns, rain boots, masks, gloves, ambulances, and other clinical materials that would enhance the rapid response of the teams, regardless of the target area.
