Many Cases Of Mpox In DRC Thought To Be False Diagnoses, Say Swiss Researchers

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) More than a third of mpox cases in the DRC are thought to be linked to the contamination of samples from their surroundings rather than a genuine infection, say University of Geneva researchers who analysed more than 2,700 test results. Select your language

Generated with artificial intelligence. Listening: Many cases of mpox in DRC thought to be false diagnoses, say Swiss researchers This content was published on September 22, 2026 - 12:51 3 minutes Keystone-SDA

Français fr Mpox: de nombreux cas en RDC seraient de faux diagnostics (UNIGE) Original Read more: Mpox: de nombreux cas en RDC seraient de faux diagnostics (U العربية ar فرق بحثية سويسرية: التشخيص الخاطئ وراء كثير من حالات الموبوكس في الكونغو الديمقراطية Read more: فرق بحثية سويسرية: التشخيص الخاطئ وراء كثير من حالات الموبوكس في الكونغو الديمق

According to a study done by several institutions, including the University of Geneva, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, nearly 35% of the samples were found to be contaminated with mpox viral DNA. These tests, carried out between April 2024 and April 2026, were conducted in the cities of Goma, Kamituga, Kinshasa and Uvira in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

In August 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, before lifting this alert in September 2025. Mpox is characterised by fever and skin rashes that can cause painful and disfiguring lesions. In some cases, it can be fatal. Between 2024 and 2026, more than 120,000 cases and around 1,500 deaths were recorded in Africa.

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