The rapid spread of monkeypox virus in Europe and the United States Yang Yongjie urges the establishment of a quarantine system as soon as possible

The epidemic has not subsided, and the new crown epidemic has not subsided, and the monkeypox virus has come again.

This highly contagious virus, originally prevalent in Central and West Africa, has recently spread in more than 20 countries.

The Secretary for Food and Health, Chen Zhaoshi, said recently that the risk of monkeypox in Hong Kong is not high after risk assessment, but the situation will be closely monitored.

Legislative Councilor Yang Yongjie is very concerned about the outbreak of monkeypox in foreign countries. He is worried that as European and American students return to Hong Kong during the summer vacation, the virus will take the opportunity to invade the Hong Kong community. He called on the government to make arrangements in advance, and foreshadowed a written inquiry in the Legislative Council on June 8.

The information posted by Yang Yongjie on May 24 indicated that there were more than 100 confirmed and suspected cases in 16 countries, but the number of global cases has increased significantly a few days later.

(Yongjie Yang Facebook)

Global monkeypox cases have risen sharply. When Yang Yongjie posted information on Facebook on Tuesday (24th), he also wrote that there were more than 100 confirmed and suspected cases in 16 countries, but by Friday (27th), WHO pointed to Central Africa, In addition to the main epidemic countries in West Africa, there have been more than 200 confirmed cases and more than 100 suspected cases in other countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada and other countries with more Hong Kong students.

Expecting more cases, the WHO called on countries to step up surveillance, but stressed it was a manageable situation.

Symptoms can last for 21 days and the mortality rate can reach 10%

According to the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health, the incubation period of monkeypox is 5 to 21 days. In the first few days after infection, fever, severe headache, muscle pain and swollen lymph nodes will occur. One to three days after the fever, oral ulcers will appear and a rash will appear on the body. .

Symptoms generally last 14 to 21 days and usually resolve on their own, but data from past outbreaks have shown a mortality rate of 1% to 10%.

Humans are likely to be infected by contact with infected animals, humans, and contaminated objects. In addition, droplet transmission caused by long-term face-to-face contact, or direct contact with body fluids, there is a chance of human-to-human transmission.

Microscope photo provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2003, with monkeypox virus on the left.

(AP)

A large number of overseas students will return to Hong Kong during the summer vacation

Hong Kong is a highly free city. Although the new crown epidemic has hindered the exchange of people, it has not cut off entry and exit. A large number of overseas Hong Kong people studying abroad will return to Hong Kong during the summer vacation.

Yang Yongjie is very worried about this, especially because of his previous experience with the new crown. He is worried that if monkeypox spreads on a large scale among humans, it will be beneficial to virus variants, just like the new crown, it will greatly increase the infectivity and endanger the public health safety of Hong Kong.

Chen Zhaoshi said on Thursday (26th) that after the risk assessment, there have been no cases in Hong Kong so far, and the chance of monkeypox is not high, but he emphasized that the situation will be closely monitored, and he also pointed out that the Center for Health Protection has the ability to detect.

Director of Health Lam Man-kin also said that monkeypox patients will have fever, headache, muscle pain and swollen lymph nodes, which are easier to detect and follow up.

Lin Wenjian revealed that the Department of Health is contacting pharmaceutical factories to understand the supply of vaccines.

Advocate the establishment of rapid testing and isolation mechanism as the new crown epidemic specification

Yang Yongjie believes that the government's pace is still too slow.

He noticed that a large number of international students will return to Hong Kong in June, and the time is tight, and there are many things to prepare during this time: "First of all, we must have emergency plans, including rapid testing and isolation facilities. In fact, the fifth wave of the new crown epidemic has arrived so far. Hong Kong people have already undergone rapid testing, and there are hotel isolation facilities, but no monkeypox virus inspection is currently performed.” He said that rapid monkeypox testing should be added as soon as possible, and isolation and quarantine should be carried out according to the specifications of the new crown epidemic to block the virus. into the community.

There is evidence that the smallpox vaccine can prevent monkeypox, and the WHO says it is 85% effective.

However, the World Health Organization declared smallpox extinct in 1980. In the same year, Hong Kong stopped vaccinating children against smallpox. In other words, all Hong Kong people aged 42 and below are not immune to monkeypox.

According to the WHO, the smallpox vaccine is 85% effective in preventing monkeypox.

(File photo/Photo by Su Weiran)

It is recommended to buy vaccines in advance to avoid the difficulty of panic buying after the outbreak

The World Health Organization believes that the monkeypox epidemic is controllable, but at the beginning of the outbreak of the new coronavirus, the WHO also believed that the new coronavirus "should not be transmitted from person to person", and subsequent development proved that the prediction was wrong.

Although the smallpox vaccine is not a brand new product, it has not been produced in various countries for 40 years. Some countries with epidemics, such as Spain, Denmark, and Germany, have begun to purchase vaccines.

Yang Yongjie is worried that in the event of an outbreak, Hong Kong, which is currently deviating from the main epidemic area, will not be able to rush to buy enough vaccines, so he advocates buying it now: "From the experience of the new crown, we know that when the epidemic broke out, the whole world was rushing to buy medicines, vaccines, medicines. The factory may not have enough supply, and even if you buy it, it will be very expensive. Therefore, I hope the government can purchase tens of thousands of doses in advance for emergency use on the front line.”

Under the new crown epidemic, foreign passengers arriving in Hong Kong must be isolated in designated quarantine hotels and undergo quarantine. Yang Yongjie suggested establishing the same quarantine mechanism for monkeypox as soon as possible.

(File photo/Photo by Liang Pengwei)

It is impossible to cut off travel for a long time. Quarantine on arrival is very important

Recently, many Hong Kong people, especially business people, are eagerly looking forward to customs clearance with the Mainland or foreign countries. Japan's resumption of the entry of foreign tourists is also great news for many people.

However, the new crown epidemic has not yet subsided, and the monkeypox virus has risen again. Is it necessary to completely close the customs to ensure safety?

"It is impossible for Hong Kong to cut off contact with foreign countries for a long time." Yang Yongjie does not think that it is necessary to completely shut down the customs to prevent the virus from entering. "Actually, the fifth wave of the epidemic did not completely cut off people's exchanges, but Hong Kong should not take the virus lightly while staying in Hong Kong. Testing and quarantine are very important.”

Yang Yongjie pointed out that if there is an unfortunate outbreak of the virus and Hong Kong becomes an epidemic port, it will really be completely closed.

The Department of Health points out that there is still a risk of the new crown epidemic in summer. Chen Zhaoshi: The risk of monkeypox in Hong Kong is not high. Smallpox vaccine has been suspended for more than 40 years. French experts worry about monkeypox waiting for an opportunistic outbreak of monkeypox.