New Mpox case confirmed in Kenya as total rises to nine

Ministry of Health confirms one new Mpox case in Nakuru. [Standard, File]

The Ministry of Health has reported one new Mpox case in the last 24 hours, bringing the total confirmed cases to nine.

 In a statement on Wednesday, October 10, Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa said the new case involves a 37-year-old male truck driver who travelled to Rwanda and Uganda.

She said surveillance teams detected the case in Nakuru.

The nine confirmed cases are distributed across Nakuru (two), Taita Taveta (one), Busia (one), Nairobi (one), Mombasa (one), Makueni (one), Kajiado (one) and Bungoma (one).

Barasa confirmed that no deaths have occurred in the cases.

“Our surveillance efforts remain robust and we are committed to monitoring the situation closely,” said Barasa.

The Ministry has traced 68 contacts, with 61 monitored for the recommended 21-day period.

Seven contacts continue to be monitored by public health teams.

Barasa said only one contact tested positive during the monitoring period, adding that the Ministry screened 15,541 travellers at Points of Entry (POEs) in the last 24 hours.

 She noted this raised the total screened to 1,128,976 across 26 POEs, with the National Public Health Laboratory testing 227 samples.

Of these, nine have been confirmed positive and 211 negative.

The government has cautioned citizens to avoid close contact with infected individuals, not to touch items used by them, limit sexual partners, wash hands regularly and avoid contact with wild animals.

 “By staying informed and adhering to recommended measures, we can collectively control this outbreak,” added Barasa.