What is Monkeypox, how dangerous is it and how does it spread: An FAQ
New Delhi, July 25: India has reported four cases of monkeypox so far - three from Kerala and one from Delhi - the latest being that of a 34-year-old man in the national capital with no history of foreign travel testing positive for the disease.
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The patient, who is presently recovering at an isolation centre at the Lok Nayak Hospital, had attended a 'stag party' in Himachal Pradesh's Manali recently, official sources told PTI.
Q.
What
is
monkeypox?
A.
Monkeypox
is
a
viral
zoonosis
(a
virus
transmitted
to
humans
from
animals)
with
symptoms
similar
to
those
seen
in
the
past
in
smallpox
patients,
although
it
is
clinically
less
severe.
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There are two distinct genetic clades of the monkeypox virus - the Central African (Congo Basin) clade and West African. The Congo Basin clade has historically caused more severe disease and is thought to be more transmissible.
Q:
What
are
the
symptoms
and
what
is
the
recovery
period?
A:
Monkeypox
is
usually
a
self-limited
disease
with
the
symptoms
lasting
two
to
four
weeks.
The
case
fatality
ratio
has
historically
ranged
from
zero
to
11
per
cent
in
the
general
population
and
has
been
higher
among
young
children.
In
recent
times,
the
case
fatality
ratio
has
been
around
three
to
six
per
cent.
Monkeypox typically presents itself with fever, headache, rashes for up to three weeks, sore throat, cough and swollen lymph nodes.
The symptoms include lesions, which usually begin within one to three days of the onset of fever, last for around two to four weeks, and are often described as painful until the healing phase when they turn itchy (in the crust stage).
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Q.
How
does
it
spread?
A.
Human-to-human
transmission
is
known
to
occur
primarily
through
large
respiratory
droplets
generally
requiring
a
prolonged
close
contact.
It
can
also
be
transmitted
through
direct
contact
with
body
fluids
or
lesion
material,
and
indirect
contact
with
lesion
material,
such
as
through
contaminated
clothing
or
linens
of
an
infected
person.
Animal-to-human transmission may occur by bite or scratch of infected animals like small mammals, including rodents (rats, squirrels) and non-human primates (monkeys, apes) or through bush meat preparation.
Q:
What
is
the
incubation
period
and
the
period
of
communicability?
A:
The
incubation
period
(interval
from
infection
to
onset
of
symptoms)
is
usually
six
to
13
days
but
can
range
from
five
to
21
days.
The
period
of
communicability
is
one
to
two
days
before
the
rash
until
all
the
scabs
fall
off
or
get
subsided.
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Q:
Is
monkeypox
sexually
transmitted?
A:
Tedros
Adhanom
Ghebreyesus,
Director
General
of
the
World
Health
Organisation,
while
declaring
monkeypox
a
public
health
emergency
of
international
concern,
said,
"For
the
moment,
this
is
an
outbreak
that's
concentrated
among
men
who
have
sex
with
men,
especially
those
with
multiple
sexual
partners.
That
means,
this
is
an
outbreak
that
can
be
stopped
with
the
right
strategies
in
the
right
groups."
Research
published
in
the
New
England
Journal
of
Medicine
last
Thursday,
which
looked
at
528
confirmed
infections,
showed
95
per
cent
of
cases
were
transmitted
through
sexual
activity
and
that
98
per
cent
of
those
infected
were
gay
or
bisexual
men.
Q:
Is
monkeypox
a
new
disease?
A:
No.
Human
monkeypox
was
first
identified
in
1970
in
the
Democratic
Republic
of
the
Congo.
Since
then,
most
cases
have
been
reported
from
rural,
rainforest
regions
of
the
Congo
Basin,
particularly
in
the
Democratic
Republic
of
the
Congo
and
human
cases
have
increasingly
been
reported
from
across
central
and
west
Africa.
Since 1970, human cases of monkeypox have been reported in 11 African countries. In 2003, the first monkeypox outbreak outside Africa was in the US. This outbreak led to over 70 cases of monkeypox in America.
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Monkeypox has also been reported in travelers from Nigeria to Israel and the United Kingdom in September 2018, December 2019, May 2021 and May 2022, to Singapore in May 2019, and to the US in November 2021.
In May this year, multiple cases of monkeypox were identified in several non-endemic countries. Globally, over 16,000 cases of monkeypox have now been reported from 75 countries and there have been five deaths so far due to the outbreak.