SANTA CRUZ, Manila — The first fatality among 52 cases of monkey pox (Mpox) has been recorded, according to the Department of Health (DoH) since the disease was detected in August last year.

However, at a media forum, health secretary Teodoro 'Ted' Herbosa explained that the direct cause of death of the patient was not mpox but a comorbidity.

More details about the patient who died, however, was not available of press time.

Still, the health chief disclosed that of the 52 Mpox patients, 28 have already recovered as of December 16 while the other 23 are considered active cases with the patients in home isolation.

"(Their) isolation period will end when all their lesions have healed and the scabs have fallen off," Herbosa noted.

According to the health department, majority of the reported Mpox cases were from the National Capital Region with the rest coming were from Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon region (13), Central Luzon (three), Cagayan Valley (two) and Central Visayas (one).

It added that a patient from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) suspected to have Mpox turned out to be negative for the virus.

Secretary Herbosa clarified that 30 percent of Mpox patients were people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). “With their low immunity, they are the ones who are vulnerable to contract Mpox,” he cited.

“But what is important is that none of the 52 Mpox patients have the more severe Clade Ib variant. They are all Clade II, which is self-limiting, with patients recovering over time with little medical treatment,” Herbosa quickly added.

Since September, the DoH decided not to regularly release its tally of Mpox cases to avoid unnecessary fear and panic.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization in November decided to keep its alert for Mpox at the highest level, as the number of cases and affected countries continues to rise.

It also declared Mpox a global public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) in August for the second time in two years, following an outbreak in Africa that could spread outside the continen