Health Dept confirms first Mpox death in Gauteng
The Department of Health on Wednesday confirmed the death of a Gauteng man who tested positive for Mpox.
The 37-year-old man tested positive for Mpox (formerly known as Monkeypox) in May and was admitted to Tembisa Hospital last week Friday.
He was one of the five confirmed cases in South Africa.
Health Minister Joe Phaahla briefed the media on Wednesday morning on plans to curb the spread of the disease.
Phaahla said three cases were recorded in KwaZulu-Natal and two in Gauteng.
None of the patients had a history of travel to countries currently experiencing an outbreak
“The death that occurred is amongst the two cases in Gauteng. This patient passed away late on Monday at Tembisa Hospital,” the minister said.
“All cases and all the patients are males aged between 30 and 39 years without any travel history to other countries which are experiencing outbreaks.
"The cases have co-morbidities and have been identified as key populations, Men who have Sex with Men (MSM). Thus, the department is reaching out to organisations working on HIV programmes and with key populations in addition to other stakeholders to implement targeted communication to intensify awareness about the outbreak and local transmission of the disease.”
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