Canada among 10 countries reporting highest cumulative mpox cases, WHO reports

As an mpox outbreak continues to spread globally, the World Health Organization says Canada is among the top 10 countries reporting the highest cumulative cases to date.

From Jan. 1, 2022 to Aug. 9, 2023, the WHO has noted a total of 89,308 laboratory-confirmed cases of mpox, or monkeypox, reported globally, according to a status report published on Monday.

While not the most affected of countries, Canada finds itself among the top 10 nations grappling with the illness.

As of July 28, 2023, the government of Canada has received detailed case reports on 1,440 confirmed cases of mpox in the country, and is reporting a total of 1,503 confirmed cases on its dashboard.

That differs slightly from the World Health Organization’s figure of 1,496 confirmed Canadian cases, which the WHO says is expected and due “to different inclusion criteria and different data cut-off times.”

With the 1,496 Canadian cases as reported by the WHO, the country is tenth in highest cumulative cases worldwide.

The U.S. has the highest number with 30,446 total cases, followed by Brazil with 10,967 and Spain at 7,560. Colombia (4,090), Mexico (4,045), Peru (3,812), the U.K. (3,771) and Germany (3,694) are also among the top ten countries.

Together, these countries account for about 82 per cent of the total cases reported globally since last January, the WHO said.

The WHO says the disease continues to spread.

In the last month, there were 1,020 new cases globally, which is a 1.2 per cent increase in total cases. The Western Pacific Region contributed a significant majority, with 77.2 per cent of the cases, according to the report, “driven by sustained community transmission in China.”

The number of weekly cases reported globally declined by 58.9 per cent in the first week of August compared to the previous week, but the WHO noted this could be in part because of data from China that includes 491 new cases not yet accounted for in the current analysis.

The mpox outbreak is currently affecting 113 countries, areas and territories. Some countries have sporadic cases while others have high community transmission.

One new country was added to the outbreak list in this report; Trinidad and Tobago reported its first three mpox cases.

China and Portugal, along with six other countries, reported a significant increase in cases from June 28 to Aug. 8. China had a 140 per cent increase while Portugal reported a 201 per cent increase.

Globally, there have been 152 confirmed deaths, with three recent ones reported in the U.S.

The WHO’s next mpox update is expected in the second week of September.