International Research Center of Excellence, Institute of Human Virology Nigeria, Abuja, Nigeria.
Division of Epidemiology and Prevention, Institute of Human Virology.
Curr Opin Pediatr. 2023 Apr 1;35(2):193-200. doi: 10.1097/MOP.0000000000001232. Epub 2023 Feb 22.
Human mpox disease (formerly monkeypox) was first diagnosed in an infant in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970. Mpox was rarely reported outside West and Central Africa until the global outbreak in May 2022. On 23 July 2022, the WHO declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern. These developments warrant a global update on pediatric mpox.
Mpox epidemiology in endemic African countries has changed from predominantly affecting children under 10 years to adults 20-40 years old. This shift also applies to the global outbreak, where 18-44-year-old adult men who have sex with men are disproportionately affected. Furthermore, the proportion of children affected in the global outbreak is less than 2%, while children under 18 years constitute nearly 40% of cases in African countries. The highest mortality rates remain among both children and adults in African countries.
Mpox epidemiology has shifted to adults and is affecting relatively few children in the current global outbreak. However, infants, immunocompromised children and African children are still at high risk of severe disease. Mpox vaccines and therapeutic interventions should be accessible to at-risk and affected children globally, especially to those living in endemic African countries.
人类猴痘病（以前称为猴痘）于 1970 年在刚果民主共和国的一名婴儿中首次确诊。在 2022 年 5 月全球疫情爆发之前，猴痘在西非和中非以外的地区很少报告。2022 年 7 月 23 日，世界卫生组织宣布猴痘为国际关注的突发公共卫生事件。这些发展情况需要对儿科猴痘进行全球更新。
在地方性流行非洲国家，猴痘的流行病学已从主要影响 10 岁以下儿童转变为影响 20-40 岁成年人。这种转变也适用于全球疫情爆发，在那里，与男性发生性关系的 18-44 岁成年男性受到不成比例的影响。此外，在全球疫情爆发中受影响的儿童比例不到 2%，而 18 岁以下的儿童在非洲国家的病例中占近 40%。在非洲国家，儿童和成年人的死亡率仍然最高。
猴痘的流行病学已转向成年人，在当前的全球疫情中相对较少影响儿童。然而，婴儿、免疫功能低下的儿童和非洲儿童仍然有患重病的高风险。应向全球有风险和受影响的儿童，特别是生活在地方性流行非洲国家的儿童提供猴痘疫苗和治疗干预措施。
