Health

Monkeypox First Case Detected In Egypt

Published

2 years ago

September 8, 2022

(CTN News) _ Egypt announced on Wednesday that it had detected the first monkeypox case in the country. The patient is an Egyptian with a residency in Europe.

An Egyptian citizen has tested positive for monkeypox virus, which was detected by epidemiological monitoring procedures carried out by the ministry as part of its continuous follow-up of the epidemiological situation.

A statement released by the hospital said that the 42-year-old man had been isolated in a hospital and his condition was stable at the time.

In accordance with World Health Organization treatment and follow-up protocols, all health and preventive measures have been taken with his close contacts.

It follows more than two years of strict isolation and health measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which started in May.

As the disease has spread to dozens of countries, the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency.

Monkeypox — what you need to know

Approximately 28,000 cases have been confirmed worldwide in the last three months, and the first deaths have also begun to be reported.

As a matter of fact, monkeypox has been prevalent in a dozen African countries for decades, but in contrast to previous outbreaks on the continent, it is now primarily spread through sexual contact.

So far, 99 percent of the cases in the US have been among men who have had sex with men (MSM). Children are particularly affected by the virus in Africa.

The British Medical Journal (BMJ),

The Lancet and New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) published studies in the last three weeks that painted a clinical picture of the current spike in infections, even though the results are still in the early stages and based on a few hundred cases.

Nearly all of the cases in each of the studies can be attributed to the MSM community.

The main symptoms were the same in all three studies. According to the BMJ, “the characteristics of this cohort differ from those of previous outbreaks in endemic regions.”

As far as the two key elements are concerned, they are fever, often accompanied by muscle aches, and skin lesions that scab over.

In recent cases, sexual activity has been heavily linked to transmission, but details vary due to types of transmission.

What is the cure for monkeypox?

Currently, there is no specific treatment approved for monkeypox virus infection. However, there are several antiviral medications used to treat smallpox and other conditions that may help patients with monkeypox infection.