Mexico & Argentina report first virus cases as Britain sees infections rocket past 100
MONKEYPOX cases have now hit 106 with Brits becoming increasingly worried about the virus.
Despite some fears, health chiefs are urging those who are worried they are suffering from the virus to contact sexual health clinics rather than bombarding 111.
Head of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Mateo Prochazka wants staff to be able to focus on handling other health queries.
Mr Prochazka told The Daily Telegraph: “Sexual health clinics are not just for gay and bisexual men.
“Anyone can be seen in a sexual health clinic, regardless of gender, sexual orientation or identity. Everyone is welcome.
“There are other potential routes of trying to get yourself into the system, maybe calling NHS 111, but this resource has been really overloaded with everyone calling who had a rash.”
The NHS have also stated that what you should do if you pick up the virus.
They state: “As the infection can spread through close contact, it’s important to isolate if you’re diagnosed with it.
“You may be asked to isolate at home if your symptoms are mild.
“If your symptoms are severe or you’re at higher risk of getting seriously ill (for example, if you have a weakened immune system), you may need to stay in a specialist hospital until you recover.
“You may be offered a vaccination to reduce the risk of getting seriously ill.”
At least three people in the South West have been vaccinated against monkeypox following close contact with an infected person.
Two people from Exeter and one person in Bristol received a smallpox vaccine after potential exposure to the virus.
Read our Monkeypox blog below for the latest news and updates…
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Monkeypox outbreak could be just ‘the peak of the iceberg’
The World Health Organization has warned that 200 monkeypox cases found in recent weeks outside countries where the virus usually circulates could be just the beginning.
Sylvie Briand, WHO’s epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention chief said: “We don’t know if we are just seeing the peak of the iceberg [or] if there are many more cases that are undetected in communities.”
Monkeypox is related to smallpox, a deadly disease that was eradicated in 1980.
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US CDC publishes guidelines on monkeypox vaccine
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday published recommendations by its group of independent experts on a smallpox vaccine that limit its use to only people who work closely with viruses such as monkeypox.
The Jynneos vaccine, made by Bavarian Nordic, will be available for the recommended groups at a time when monkeypox infections are spreading in Europe, United States and beyond.
The publication of the vote by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which took place in November last year, formalizes the recommendations.
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Holiday warning as monkeypox hits favourite UK summer destination
A BRITISH tourist staying at a favourite holiday hotspot in Spain is being tested for monkeypox.
Health chiefs in the region confirmed the holidaymaker on the Canary Island of Fuerteventura was one of five suspected new cases currently being analysed.
The age of the unnamed man, thought to be the first British tourist in Spain affected since the country announced its first cases last week, has not been revealed.
A spokesman for the Canary Islands’ Health Service confirmed in a short statement: “A suspected case of monkeypox in Fuerteventura corresponds to a British tourist.”
It is not yet known when they will confirm whether he has the disease.
Authorities have not said if he is holidaying alone on the island or relaxing with relatives who are also being tested.
Spain has so far confirmed around 40 cases of monkeypox and said another 67 people are being tested.
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Irish health executive says it expects more cases
The Health Service Executive (HSE) is expecting more cases of monkeypox in the coming days as public health officials intensify their efforts to contain a virus that originates in the jungles of west and central Africa.
The HSE is attempting to trace people who may have been exposed to the virus by a man from the east of the country who tested positive on Friday after presenting with symptoms. The results of tests on a suspected second case are awaited.
The Public Health Agency in Northern Ireland recorded its first case on Thursday and is expecting more in the weeks ahead.
In a statement yesterday the HSE said people infected with monkeypox usually recover within weeks, though it warned that severe illness might occur in those with weak immune systems, pregnant women and babies. There is no known cure.
Kim Roberts, an assistant professor of virology at Trinity College Dublin, said more cases are almost certain as it can take up to seven days, and sometimes weeks, for symptoms to develop after exposure.
“This means it can take longer to identify cases at this stage, but also that public-health teams have time to identify first contacts and break the rate of transmission. I would expect the numbers across the different countries which have expe- rienced outbreaks to go up in the coming weeks and months, but then fall as public-health teams break the transmission cycle,” she said.
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Covid hospital cases fall to lowest level since last summer
Covid-19 hospital cases have fallen to their lowest rate since last summer, an expert has said.
Professor Linda Bauld said on Friday that daily hospital cases with the virus had dropped to less than 50, the first time the figure has dropped so low in almost a year.
She also added there were “about 650” people in hospital with the virus, compared to more than 2,000 last month.
“We’ve seen a significant decline in levels of infection in the community,” she told BBC Radio Scotland on Friday.
“The (Office for National Statistics) infection survey will have some results out today that shows another drop.”
She added: “That R number – which nobody is hearing about any more, but is still with us – is well below … it’s between 0.7 and 0.9.”
However, Prof Bauld stressed that the virus had not gone away and the potential for new variants continues.
The Omicron variant, which spread aggressively during the winter, caused a surge in cases.
“We’re not saying that everything’s over because we may see new variants, and we may see surges in infection again, but we do seem to be in a much more stable situation,” she said.
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What are the monkeypox symptoms? (2/2)
An itchy and sometimes painful rash slowly appears one to three days into illness, starting with the face, palms of the hands and soles of the feet.
What starts as a seemingly harmless red rash – which looks like chickenpox – evolves into angry blisters that can last several days.
The inside of the mouth, genitals and lining of the eyes can also be affected by the nasty rash.
If the rash spreads to the eyes it can cause blindness.
While some patients may have only a few lesions, others will have thousands, the WHO says.
Symptoms generally last from 14 to 21 days, with severe cases relating to age, the extent of virus exposure, the patient’s health and the severity of complications.
Doctors and the public have been warned to keep an eye out for unexplained rashes.
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What are the monkeypox symptoms? (1/2)
Monkeypox causes symptoms between five and 21 days after exposure.
The symptoms of monkeypox start off similar to flu. But then a rash breaks out, starting on the face.
Initial symptoms include:
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Monkeypox patients could be infectious WEEKS after recovery
SEVERE monkeypox patients may be infectious for up to ten weeks, scientists fear.
An investigation of previous patients who had the disease found one man tested positive more than 70 days after he first showed symptoms.
It comes as cases of the virus reach 71 in the UK, and health officials have urged people to stay alert to symptoms.
Signs of the disease in the early stages include fever, headache, chills, back and muscle aches.
Patients are contagious until their scabs fall off, the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) says, and the scabs themselves can contain viral material.
However, the latest study, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, suggests people may be infectious long after their rash has settled.
Study author Dr Hugh Adler, from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, said: “It remains positive in the throat and blood for the length of the illness and maybe even longer after the rash is resolved.
“We don’t know that this means these patients are more infectious or infectious for longer, but it does inform us of the biology of disease.”
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So, just how dangerous is monkeypox?
Monkeypox is very rare so unless you have been to West or Central Africa or been in contact with someone who has it, there is little reason to worry.
The disease is transmitted through contact with blood, body fluids, spots, blisters or scabs of an infected individual.
Animals can also be infected as the disease originated from them, meaning if you are bitten by an infected animal you can also catch monkeypox.
It is possible to become infected by touching the clothes or bed sheets which have been used by someone with Monkeypox.
This means that the danger of contracting the disease is low, with around 20 cases confirmed in the UK currently.
If you do catch monkeypox, you are very unlikely to die from it.
Read the article in full here.
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Mexico confirms first case of monkeypox
Mexico on Saturday reported the first confirmed case of monkeypox in the country, according to deputy health secretary Hugo Lopez-Gatell.
The patient was a 50-year-old permanent resident of New York who is being treated in Mexico City, Lopez-Gatell said on Twitter.
“He was probably infected in the Netherlands,” Lopez-Gatell wrote, adding that the patient was being isolated and was in stable condition.
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Explained: What is the public health advice?
The NHS suggests that it is rare that anyone in the UK who has not been in contact with an infected person or travelled to Africa recently will have the virus.
If you are infected you should isolate and inform the NHS.
Nevertheless, they suggest washing your hands regularly with soap or hand sanitiser and only eating meat which has been fully cooked.
They also have a list of things to avoid:
- Avoid wild or stray animals, including dead animals
- Avoid any animals that appear unwell
- Do not eat or touch meat from wild animals (bush meat)
- Do not share bedding or towels with people who are unwell and may have monkeypox
- Do not have close contact with people who are unwell and may have monkeypox
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If you catch it, ‘isolation is the most effective measure’
Dr Carlos Maluquer de Motes, Reader in Molecular Virology, University of Surrey, said: “Isolation is one of the most effective measures to contain the spread of a disease, particularly a viral disease, because it limits the number of susceptible individuals that can be exposed to the virus.
“Isolation of confirmed cases and the identification and vaccination of all their close contacts creates a circle of protected people around a positive case that is very effective in breaking chains of transmission.
“This ‘ring vaccination’ strategy was successfully used to eradicate smallpox, so it is a proven strategy to contain poxvirus disease.”
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Explained: How to treat monkeypox
Monkeypox symptoms last between two and four weeks. There is no treatment for it – it gets better on its own.
There are no specific vaccines available for monkeypox, either.
But outbreaks can be controlled using contact tracing.
A vaccine developed for smallpox – which was declared eradicated in 1980 – is also licensed for monkeypox.
This jab has been proven to be 85 per cent effective in preventing monkeypox. However, most people in the UK will not be vaccinated against smallpox given that it is no longer in circulation.
The Government has stocks of the smallpox vaccine which is being offered to very close contacts of those affected. These people also have to isolate for 21 days.
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The full list of monkeypox symptoms you must not ignore
MONKEYPOX is spreading in the UK and Brits are being told to stay alert to the symptoms.
The virus is not new, having been endemic in parts of Africa for decades.
These reports, together with the list of symptoms compiled by the UKHSA, helps build a picture of how monkeypox presents.
The signs may include:
- Fever
- Headache
- Muscle aches
- Backache
- Chills
- Exhaustion
- Night sweats
- Cold-like symptoms, such as congestion and runny nose
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Swollen groin
- Rash
Complications of the illness were documented as:
- Low mood
- Severe pain
- Conjunctivitis
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Current global outbreak was ‘waiting to happen’
Dr Romulus Breban, a researcher at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, said the current global outbreak was “waiting to happen” because the world had an “almost zero” immunity level.
Nineteen countries have detected cases in the past month, which has sparked alarm because infections usually only occur in west and central Africa but has now spread to Europe and the Americas.
There is already community transmission in the UK – but the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) stresses that the risk to the public is “low”.
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Monkeypox patients could be infectious WEEKS after recovery
SEVERE monkeypox patients may be infectious for up to ten weeks, scientists fear.
An investigation of previous patients who had the disease found one man tested positive more than 70 days after he first showed symptoms.
It comes as cases of the virus reach 71 in the UK, and health officials have urged people to stay alert to symptoms.
Signs of the disease in the early stages include fever, headache, chills, back and muscle aches.
Patients are contagious until their scabs fall off, the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) says, and the scabs themselves can contain viral material.
However, the latest study, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, suggests people may be infectious long after their rash has settled.
Study author Dr Hugh Adler, from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, said: “It remains positive in the throat and blood for the length of the illness and maybe even longer after the rash is resolved.
“We don’t know that this means these patients are more infectious or infectious for longer, but it does inform us of the biology of disease.”
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Overall risk to population ‘remains low’ says UKHSA
Despite the rise in cases, the UKHSA has said the risk to the overall UK population “remains low”.
Gay, bisexual and men who have sex with men are being urged in particular to be aware of symptoms, especially if they have recently had a new sexual partner.
UKHSA teams have been tracing contacts of those with a confirmed case and are advising those at highest risk to isolate for 21 days.
A smallpox vaccine is also being offered to close contacts to reduce their risk of symptoms and severe illness.
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‘My biggest fear was that I was going to lose my thumb’
A veterinarian who caught monkeypox in 2003 has come forward to describe his illness.
Dr Kurt Zaeske told NBC he suffered “flu-like symptoms” including a fever, dizziness, nausea, fatigue and a headache.
Then he started developing small lesions on his body, including “one significant blister that developed on my thumb, and that became quite painful.”
He said: “My biggest fear was that I was going to lose my thumb and not be able to practice anymore.”
Dr Zaeske caught monkeypox from a dog who had likely been infected by a rodent.
He was part of the biggest and first monkeypox outbreak outside of Africa, when more than 70 cases were identified in the US, all linked to infected dogs.
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Five warnings that were missed
Here are the five crucial warnings that were missed:
- September 2018: Porton Down scientist warns of potential ‘devastating consequences’ of monkeypox
- June 2019: A coalition of experts met at Chatham House in London to discuss how monkeypox ‘might fill the epidemiological niche vacated by smallpox‘. They warned 70% of world is vulnerable to monkeypox
- September 2020: Two years ago, a paper published by the WHO warned the ‘epidemic potential’ of monkeypox was increasing.
- November 2021: Monkeypox pandemic model warns virus could kill 300million in about 18 months.
- February 2022: Scientists say monkeypox is a disease in ‘resurgence’ in a research review in the Neglected Tropical Diseases journal. It was published just a few months before the current outbreak
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WHO warn this could be ‘the peak of the iceberg’
The World Health Organization has warned that 200 monkeypox cases found in recent weeks outside countries where the virus usually circulates could be just the beginning.
Sylvie Briand, WHO’s epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention chief said: “We don’t know if we are just seeing the peak of the iceberg [or] if there are many more cases that are undetected in communities.”
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Warnings had come before
Multiple scientists and studies have warned about the monkeypox virus for years as the alarm was first raised in 2018.
A British scientist at a level four biosecurity lab – Porton Down, which works with smallpox-like viruses – first warned about its epidemic-causing potential four years ago.
They warned how the emergence of monkeypox could have ‘potentially devastating consequences‘ for the majority of the world’s population.
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‘I survived the last US monkeypox outbreak – here are the warning symptoms’
A MONKEYPOX survivor is sharing his experience with the virus as an increasing number of states report suspected cases.
Cases have now been confirmed in the US, United Kingdom, Portugal, and Italy, while potential cases are being investigated in Canada and Spain.
Nearly 20 years ago, Wisconsin had its own outbreak and the new cases hold painful memories for survivor Dr Kurt Zaeske.
Back in 2003, he was a veterinarian who came in contact with the virus from a prairie dog he was treating.
“Within about 48 hours of my handling that specimen, I became ill,” he told local news outlet WISN.
“I started developing a blister on my thumb that didn’t look right, didn’t act right,” he said back in 2003, after being quarantined for two weeks.
Read the article in full here.
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Is monkeypox deadly?
Monkeypox comes from the same family of viruses as smallpox but is much less severe.
No deaths have been reported from the 2022 outbreak of the disease in the UK.
The chance of catching monkeypox in the UK is very low as cases are rare.
Cases have been linked to some festivals in Europe.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) up to a tenth of people who contract the virus may die but this is mainly in younger age groups.
The majority of those who catch monkeypox will survive.
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Officials confident outbreak will not reach the levels of covid
Officials are confident that the outbreak will not reach the levels of covid, believing that the risk to the public is low.
But they have urged Brits, especially gay and bisexual men, to be on the look out for any new rashes or lesions.
Teams from the UKHSA have been contacting high-risk contacts of confirmed cases and are advising them to self-isolate at home for three weeks and avoid contact with children.
Both confirmed cases and close contacts are being offered the Imvanex vaccine to form a buffer of immune people around a confirmed case to limit the spread of the disease.
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How long is the incubation period?
The virus has an incubation period of up to 21 days, which means it can take three weeks for symptoms to appear.
They include suffering from a fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion.
A rash can develop, often beginning on the face, which then spreads to other parts of the body — including the genitals.
Health officials are planning on isolating infected people’s pets in an attempt to stop the outbreak.
