Monkey Pox, What Is There To Know

Mpox is a viral disease classified as a Zoonotic disease which essentially means it spreads between humans and animals. It is caused by DNA Monkeypox virus (MPXV) of Orthopoxvirus genus. It was first discovered in 1958 in colonies of monkeys, hence the name. The first documented human infection was in 1970. So this infection has been around for quite a while.

Why then, do we have all this apprehensions and advisories of late? Since early 2024, there has been an upsurge in number of cases and deaths due to mpox. This has led to WHO declaring mpox as a PHEIC (Public Health Emergency of International Concern) on 14th August 2024.

So how does mpox spread? Most cases of mpox have spread due to close contact with someone who is infected. Close contact includes being face to face , skin to skin or mouth to skin contact. Mpox persists for sometime on clothing, bedding, towels and surfaces that have been touched by an infected person. Viral can spread to the fetus during or after birth from parent. Unlike Covid, mpox is not a respiratory virus and the aerosols produced do not persist for long.

What are the signs and symptoms of mpox? A prodromal phase is seen in mpox comprising of fever, headache, muscle aches, malaise and lymph node enlargement. Chills, sweats, sore throat and cough are usually present during prodromal phase.

Rashes develop 1 to 3 days after onset of fever and could last anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks. The lesions are often painful. They are seen predominantly on the face and are sometimes seen on the palms, soles and back of hand and feet.

How do we confirm the diagnosis? National Institute of Virology, Pune and its network of laboratories around India are equipped to conduct tests to confirm / rule out mpox infection. Scrapings of aspirated fluid from the lesions or blood can be sent for confirmation of the infection.

Although approved vaccines exist, as of now there is no recommendation for universal vaccination in India.

Most infections with mpox are self limited and recovery happens by itself. Drugs like Tecovirimat, VIGIV, Cidofovir etc are effective against orthopoxviruses.

People vaccinated for small pox should have higher immunity to mpox as it belongs to same genus as small pox.

So how de we protect ourselves?

• Avoid skin contact with sick person.
• Isolate infected patients from others.
• Practice good hand hygiene.

Doctor name - Dr.M.S.N.Prasad, MBBS, MD Pathology