A suspected Mpox outbreak on a grain ship has turned out to be a false alarm. Subsequent tests revealed it to be a case of chicken pox.
The ship was placed in quarantine after the crew reported cyst-like lesions resembling those of Mpox on a crewmember of Indian origin. However, the results from subsequent tests run by Argentine authorities came back negative. The infection turned out to be a case of chicken pox.
The ship was placed in quarantine near the port of ROSARIO, and the crewmember in particular had been isolated from the rest of the crew. The ship was arriving from Santos, Brazil, and was supposed to pick up a shipment of soy at its next stop.
Argentine authorities have not disclosed the name of the ship, only revealing that the ship is flagged in Liberia.
The alarm about mpox came less than a week after the World Health Organization issued a warning about the new strain of the virus. WHO highlighted it is primarily in Africa having been reported in 13 countries and mostly concentrated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The new strain seems to spread more easily and the symptoms are more severe.
Mpox first drew international attention in 2022 when it was called monkeypox and began spreading globally. The number of cases fell in 2023 after a global vaccination effort and control programs. However, CDC Africa is reporting a strong rise in the cases again in 2024 with over 1,400 new cases reported in the past week. In Africa, they cautioned there have been nearly 19,000 cases, a 100 percent increase, so far in 2024.
The WHO has said mpox is not the next pandemic with the concerns of COVID-19, but its warnings nonetheless have promoted countries to raise precautions. China announced new controls while countries such as Thailand are reporting investigations into possible cases. The concerns are especially high for seafarers who experienced many problems during the COVID-19 pandemic including being stranded at sea for long periods of time.
