Mpox Outbreak Result of
Decades of Neglect: WHO
猴痘爆发是几十年忽视的结果:世卫组织
Leading African scientists have accused the international community of decades of neglect in addressing sporadic mpox epidemics in regions with limited immunity.
非洲顶尖科学家指责国际社会几十年来忽视了在免疫力低的地区应对偶发猴痘流行病。
They blamed the alarming rise in the virus across Africa on this failure.
他们将病毒在整个非洲的惊人增长归咎于这一失败。
The new, more contagious strain of the virus, which recently prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a global emergency, has been allowed to spread unchecked in countries barely able to control such outbreaks, according to Dr. Dimie Ogoina, chair of WHO’s mpox emergency committee.
世界卫生组织猴痘应急委员会主席Dimie Ogoina说，这种新的、传染性更强的病毒已经在几乎无法控制疫情的国家中蔓延，世卫组织宣布全球进入紧急状态。
“What we are witnessing in Africa now is different from the global outbreak in 2022,” Ogoina said during a virtual news conference on Tuesday.
“我们现在在非洲看到的情况不同于2022年的全球疫情，”Ogoina周二在线上新闻发布会上说。
Mpox, also known as monkeypox, had been circulating for years in Nigeria and other parts of Africa, until a broader outbreak spread to more than 70 countries in 2022.
Mpox又称猴痘，多年来一直在尼日利亚和非洲其他地区流行，直到2022年在70多个国家爆发蔓延。
Unlike the previous outbreak, which mainly affected gay and bisexual men, the current wave is being transmitted through sexual contact, as well as close contact among children, pregnant women, and other vulnerable populations.
与之前主要感染同性恋和双性恋男性的疫情不同，这次疫情是通过性接触以及儿童、孕妇和其他易感人群之间的密切接触传播的。
Ogoina said that while most people over 50 may have some immunity due to past smallpox vaccinations, Africa’s predominantly young population remains at high risk.
Ogoina说，虽然大多数50岁以上的人可能因过去接种过天花疫苗而具有一定的免疫力，但非洲的年轻人感染风险较高。
Mpox, a viral infection related to smallpox, typically causes milder symptoms, including fever, chills, and body aches, but can result in severe cases with prominent blisters on the face, hands, chest, and genitals. The disease primarily spreads through close skin-to-skin contact, including sexual activity.
猴痘是一种与天花有关的病毒感染，通常会引起较轻的症状，如发烧、发冷，全身疼痛，但严重的话，会在面部、手部、胸部和生殖器出现明显的水泡。这种疾病主要通过密切的皮肤接触传播，包括性行为。
Earlier this month, WHO declared the escalating mpox outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and 11 other African countries a global emergency.
本月初，刚果民主共和国和其他11个非洲国家猴痘不断爆发，世卫组织宣布全球进入紧急状态。
Of the 18,910 reported cases so far this year, 94 percent have been in Congo alone, where 535 of the 541 reported deaths occurred. Nearly 70 percent of mpox infections in Congo were in children under 15.
在今年迄今为止报告的18910例病例中，94%发生在刚果，541例死亡病例中刚果就有535例。刚果近70%的猴痘感染者是15岁以下的儿童。
Dr. Placide Mbala-Kingebeni, a Congolese scientist who plays a key role in identifying the newest mpox strain, warned that the diagnostic tests currently used in the region often fail to detect the variant, which complicates efforts to track its spread.
刚果科学家Placide Mbala-Kingebeni博士在确定最新的猴痘毒株方面起到关键作用，他说该地区目前使用的诊断测试往往无法检测出变异株，这使得追踪其传播情况的工作变得更加复杂。
Research published by Mbala-Kingebeni in May revealed that this new strain, while potentially less deadly, is more transmissible and better adapted to human transmission.
Mbala-Kingebeni在5月份发表的研究显示，新毒株虽然致命性较低，但传播性更强，在人群中传播更快。
The new variant has been identified in four other African countries as well as in Sweden, where health officials confirmed a case earlier this month linked to travel in Africa. WHO has stated that, so far, there is no evidence to suggest that the new strain is more dangerous.
在另外四个非洲国家以及瑞典发现了新毒株，瑞典卫生官员本月初确定了一例与非洲旅行有关的病例。世卫组织表示，到目前为止，还没有证据表明新毒株更危险。
Marion Koopmans, a virus expert at Erasmus Medical Centre in the Netherlands, highlighted the severe consequences mpox is having on vulnerable groups, including instances of pregnant women miscarrying or giving birth to infected babies.
荷兰伊拉斯姆斯医学中心的病毒专家Marion Koopmans强调了猴痘对易感染群体造成的严重后果，如孕妇流产或生下受感染的婴儿。
In Europe, Spain is the only country so far to donate some of its mpox vaccine stockpile. Its health ministry announced on Tuesday that it would donate 20 percent, or roughly 500,000 doses, to African countries struggling to contain the outbreak. “We consider it senseless to accumulate vaccines where they are not needed,” the ministry stated, as it urged other European nations to follow suit.
西班牙是欧洲迄今为止唯一捐赠猴痘疫苗储备的国家。该国卫生部周二宣布，将向努力遏制疫情的非洲国家捐赠其20%的疫苗，约50万剂。“我们认为在不需要的地方囤积疫苗是毫无意义的，”卫生部敦促其他欧洲国家效仿。
Despite these pledges, none of the promised vaccines have yet to reach Africa. Last week, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported commitments from the European Union and vaccine manufacturer Bavarian Nordic for 215,000 doses, while the U.S. has donated 50,000 doses to Congo, with Japan also contributing some doses.
尽管做出了这些承诺，非洲仍未收到疫苗。上周，非洲疾控和预防中心报告称，欧盟和疫苗制造商Bavarian Nordic答应提供21.5万剂疫苗，美国已向刚果捐赠了5万剂疫苗，日本也捐了一些。
In the absence of effective vaccines and treatments, Dr. Ogoina urged African health workers to focus on supportive care, emphasizing the importance of adequate nutrition and mental health support for patients, who often face stigma due to the disease. “It’s very, very unfortunate that we have had mpox for 54 years and we are only now thinking about therapeutics,” he said.
在缺乏有效疫苗和治疗的情况下，Ogoina博士敦促非洲卫生工作者将重点放在支持性护理上，强调了为患者提供足够营养和心理健康支持的重要性，这些患者经常因疾病而有羞耻感。“非常不幸的是，猴痘已经出现54年了，我们现在才考虑治疗方法，”他说。
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