Monkeypox virus , the coming danger in Africa

Document Type : Review Article

Authors

1 medical microbiology and immunology

2 Microbiology and immunology department,faculty of medicine,sohag university,sohag,Egypt

3 medical microbiology and immunology faculty of medicine sohag university

4 Clinical and chemical pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Sohag University

5 Clinical and Chemical Pathology-Faculty of medicine- Sohag University.

6 public health and community medicine, faculty of medicine, Sohag university

Abstract

The monkeypox virus, an Orthopoxvirus in the same genus as the variola, vaccinia, and cowpox viruses, is what causes the zoonotic disease known as monkeypox. The disease has caused sporadic infections and outbreaks, mostly confined to several nations in west and central Africa, since the discovery of the first human case in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970. Due to the unprecedented global spread of the disease outside of formerly endemic nations in Africa and the need for international cooperation to fight this previously neglected disease, the WHO proclaimed monkeypox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in July 2022. Most instances of the 2022 outbreak have been diagnosed in men who have had sex with other men, who frequently present with unusual epidemiological and clinical characteristics. The outbreak has been predominantly linked to close intimate contact (including sexual activity). The incubation period for the 2022 outbreak is seven to ten days, and the majority of patients present with a systemic illness that includes fever, myalgia, and a distinctive rash with papules that progress to vesicles, pustules, and crusts in the genital, anal, or oral regions and frequently involve the mucosa. Up to 40% of patients experience complications that necessitate medical attention (such as antiviral therapy, antibiotics, and pain management), which might include rectal pain, odynophagia, penile oedema, skin abscesses, and anorectal abscesses. The majority of patients have self-limiting illnesses, and less than 1% of cases result in death.

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