Monkey pox claims its first victims outside Africa

Monkey pox what we know about the virus currently circulating

Monkeypox is a self-limiting disease in the majority of cases, but it can also be fatal. The countries affected by the epidemic still in progress identify their first deaths, what do we know about them?

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[EN VIDÉO] Monkey pox, should we be worried about it?
What are the symptoms, the modes of transmission and how to treat it? Monkey pox or Monkeypox is beginning to worry people.

While more than 20,000 cases of smallpox monkeys are now confirmed outside Africa, the disease claims its first victims.

On the same day, July 30, 2022, the deaths of two people in Spain and another in Brazil, was announced. August 2, 2022 is India that communicates on the first monkeypox death on the Asian continent. The death toll outside Africa to date is 4, compared to more than 75 in African countries where the disease is endemic.

The first monkeypox deaths

Little information is available concerning the profile of the deceased. The Spanish government said the two people who died were young men. In Brazil, the first victim of monkey pox was 41 years old and had other serious health problems, including immune. In India, the patient seems to have been contaminated in the United Arab Emirates. Upon his return to India, he was hospitalized on July 21, and contracted a fever and pain intense on July 26. He died a few days later.

Anyone can be infected with this virus through close contact with a patient.

As the epidemic progresses, more deaths are expected. The strain that circulates outside Africa is not very lethal, 1% of cases, but can cause serious forms of the disease. Indeed, about 10% of infected people must be hospitalized. Although most cases of monkeypox occur in men who have sex with men, anyone can become infected with this virus through close contact with a patient.

WHO calls on the international community to put in place sanitary measures to constrain the circulation of the virus in this community, and to extend them to the most vulnerable people (children, pregnant women and the immunocompromised). In France, the vaccination is possible for people considered to be at risk.

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