The World Health Organization (WHO) said on May 29 that monkeypox poses a "moderate risk" to overall public health globally.
Experts offer some advice to help people prevent monkeypox infection.
The WHO said that as of May 26, 23 non-monkeypox-endemic member states had reported 257 confirmed cases of monkeypox and 120 suspected cases, with no deaths so far.
This is the first time that monkeypox cases and clusters of infection have been co-located across a broad WHO geographic region, and that there is no known epidemiological link between confirmed cases in non-monkeypox-endemic countries and cases in West or Central Africa-endemic countries. Wei believes monkeypox currently poses a "moderate risk" to overall global public health.
The public health risk may become higher if monkeypox virus finds an opportunity to become a common human pathogen, evolve into mass human-to-human transmission, and spread to young children who are at higher risk for severe illness and those with weakened immune systems.
Monkeypox: A 2003 electron microscope image provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a monkeypox virion (also known as a virion, virion) that emerged from the 2003 prairie dog outbreak obtained from the relevant samples.
(AP)
symptoms
According to the Centre for Health Protection of the Hong Kong Department of Health, the symptoms of monkeypox are similar to those of Smallpox, but the disease is milder than that of Smallpox.
A few days after a patient becomes infected with monkeypox, symptoms such as fever, severe headache, muscle pain and swollen lymph nodes develop.
About 1 to 3 days after the patient has a fever, ulcers develop in the mouth and rashes on other parts of the body.
The rash usually progresses from a maculopapular rash to blisters, pustules, and then crusts within 10 days to two weeks, and rashes on all parts of the body generally develop simultaneously.
Symptoms of monkeypox last 14 to 21 days, and the patient usually resolves on its own.
In past outbreaks of monkeypox, patient mortality has ranged from 1% to 10%.
way for spreading
People can become infected when they come into contact with monkeypox-infected animals, people, or objects contaminated with monkeypox virus.
Droplet transmission caused by long-term face-to-face contact, or direct contact with body fluids, has the opportunity to transmit the virus from person to person.
Humans can become infected after being bitten or scratched by wild animals, such as certain primates, rodents, and squirrels, or by direct contact with their bodily fluids.
Prevention method
WHO said that the main strategy for monkeypox prevention is to raise awareness of the risk factors for monkeypox and teach them what to do to reduce exposure to the virus, and surveillance and rapid identification of new cases are essential to control the spread of the virus.
Health care workers and family members of patients are at greater risk of contracting monkeypox, the WHO said.
Health care workers should take standard infection control precautions when caring for, or handling samples of, patients with suspected or confirmed monkeypox infection.
If it can, the government should choose to have people who have been vaccinated against smallpox take care of the sick.
The Centre for Health Protection of the Hong Kong Department of Health said that when people go to places affected by monkeypox virus, they should avoid contact with patients or animals; when caring for patients or handling animals, they should wear protective clothing and equipment, including gloves and surgical masks. Wash your hands after these procedures; cook all animal products thoroughly before eating; seek medical attention of any suspicious symptoms.
Prison Pox: Photo courtesy of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, taken in 1997, showing the skin condition of a monkeypox patient.
(AP)
vaccine
Monkeypox and smallpox belong to the same orthopox virus, and the smallpox vaccine can effectively prevent monkeypox infection.
People who are exposed to monkeypox virus can also be vaccinated.
treatment method
At present, there is no specific medicine for monkeypox, and adjuvant therapy can relieve the patient's discomfort, and it will recover naturally after the body's immune system responds to defeat the virus.
Monkeypox | WHO: Virus to global public health risk is moderate monkeypox | WHO considers escalation to international emergency Spreading WHO fears is just the beginning of known cases or the tip of the iceberg