The Department of Health (DOH) reported on Monday that there are 18 active mpox cases in the Philippines.
Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said in a briefing that five have recovered, while 13 were considered still active.
“Ang maganda rin lahat nong 18 na napick-up namin, as of now, wala pang nahawang iba. Wala silang tinatawag na epidemiological link. Ibig sabihin no’n, if na-isolate namin sila, humihinto ‘yong pag-transmit ng sakit,” said Herbosa.
The country has logged 27 mpox infections since July 2022 with no recorded deaths.
The current mpox strain being detected is the milder type clade II and not clade Ib which has been infectious in Africa.
Symptoms for mpox include flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions. It is usually mild but could be fatal. It usually spreads through close, intimate, skin-to-skin contact.
The East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City is also ready to conduct polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing for mpox.
