PETALING JAYA: The Health Ministry is ramping up surveillance and advocacy activities on monkeypox (mpox).
This is after the World Health Organisation (WHO) recently declared mpox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
"Surveillance at international entry points where all travellers from countries that have reported mpox cases are required to monitor their health status including symptoms for 21 days after arriving in Malaysia," said the ministry in a statement on Sunday (Aug 18).
The ministry also advised individuals with a history of risky activities or who have symptoms such as rashes and blisters on the skin to seek treatment at the nearest health facility immediately and avoid contact with other individuals to prevent the spread of the virus.
"Healthcare personnel at public and private facilities are also required to notify suspected and confirmed cases to their nearest district health office to ensure prevention and control measures can be implemented," it said.
The ministry also ensured that there were enough labs for testing and diagnostics with 10 labs, including two private labs having the capability to conduct PCR tests to confirm the diagnosis.
The ministry is also increasing awareness activities by distributing materials to high-risk groups and identifying locations such as spas and saunas.
"Premises offering services which involve skin-to-skin contact with customers such as spa, massage parlours and other high-risk activities must always ensure that hygiene is maintained and ensure that their employees and customers are not experiencing symptoms such as blisters or rashes," it said.
The ministry said it would continue to work with other government agencies and non-government agencies including hospitals and private hospitals to monitor, detect and treat mpox cases.
It added that it would continue to monitor the situation within and outside the country.
"If an employee or customer experiences symptoms, they should immediately seek medical attention,” said the ministry.
WHO had declared mpox a PHEIC for the second time on Aug 14. The first PHEIC was declared on July 23, 2022 and ended on May 11, 2023.
“The second declaration was made based on the advice of the IHR Emergency Committee given the spread of the new mpox strain known as clade 1b which is spreading fast in the Democratic Republic of Congo(DRC) and neighbouring African countries,” the ministry said.
“The increase in cases in DRC is quite significant with 15,600 cases and 537 deaths reported in 2024, which is higher than the year prior. Apart from that, four countries in East Africa, namely Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda reported mpox cases for the first time,” it added.
Malaysia recorded nine mpox cases to date since the first case was detected on July 26, 2023, with the last one in November of the same year. The Health Ministry said all the cases reported had a history of high-risk activities and had recovered with no deaths reported.
