Alarm up in S. Cotabato as mpox cases hit 10
KORONADAL CITY—Health authorities in South Cotabato province had warned residents over the possible surge in cases of mpox (previously known as monkeypox) as it recorded 10 confirmed infections as of Thursday.
Dr. Conrado Braña, Integrated Provincial Health Office (Ipho) chief, said the confirmed mpox clade II cases were from the 19 suspected infections earlier reported to the provincial epidemiology and surveillance unit by rural health units (RHUs) and hospitals in the province.
The Ipho initially reported the province’s first confirmed mpox case on April 27.
Mpox, a viral zoonotic disease caused by the monkeypox virus, is transmitted through skin-to-skin contact with infected individuals, exposure to bodily fluids and respiratory droplets, and contact with contaminated materials. Initially detected in the 1970s, it was only declared a public health disease of international concern in 2024.
The mpox infections were recorded in T’boli town with four cases; Surallah with two cases; and Koronadal City and the towns of Banga, Tantangan and Lake Sebu with a case each.
Braña said six of the 19 initially suspected cases in South Cotabato had turned out negative while three more are awaiting confirmatory test results from the Department of Health (DOH).
“Based on the trend that we’re seeing now, the infections emerged from patients with no history of travel or exposure to confirmed cases,” Braña pointed out.
He said the mpox cases could still increase as reports from RHUs and hospital epidemiology and surveillance units were still coming in.
But he said the detected cases were all considered mild as expected from the clade II strain and the patients had “either recovered or on the way to recovery” by now.
Symptoms
Eldon Hans Serame, Ipho health education and promotion officer, said the 10 mpox patients were undergoing proper case management and treatment based on their symptoms, which include fever, rash, swollen lymph nodes and muscle aches.
He said extensive tracing efforts are ongoing for all possible close contacts of the patients.
The identified close contacts are being closely monitored and anyone who would exhibit suspected mpox symptoms would be promptly isolated and subjected to testing, Serame said.
Ipho, he said, has intensified its surveillance activities in coordination with local governments, hospitals and the DOH.
“We were able to immediately detect, capture and isolate suspected infections because our surveillance system in the province is very active,” Serame said.
According to Braña, mpox clade II is easier to manage as the symptoms are more visible and the disease is not considered as severe compared to COVID-19.
“This will not be like another COVID because the people now are more aware and educated about these diseases,” he said.
Braña said there is still no legally available vaccine for mpox as the DOH and the Food and Drug Administration had yet authorize any vaccine for mpox in the Philippines.
Maguindanao monitoring
On Wednesday, the Ministry of Health in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) said two residents of Maguindanao del Norte province had been infected with mpox.
Contact tracing is in progress for people who may have been in close contact with the patients, said Dr. Kadil Sinolinding, BARMM health minister.
Samples from six other people suspected of being infected with the virus are undergoing confirmatory testing with the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Metro Manila.
“We are closely monitoring them and they are aware of the disease and that they are very cooperative with our responses,” Sinolinding said. —WITH A REPORT FROM EDWIN O. FERNANDEZ
