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Epidemiological situation in the world on monkeypox

16.09.2024

Since the beginning of 2024, more than 17,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in 15 countries in the African region, more than 500 of which have been fatal.

Isolated cases of monkeypox infection have been identified in Sweden, Australia, Africa, Canada, Great Britain, Portugal, Spain, and the USA.

Currently, there are no registered cases of monkeypox in the Republic of Belarus.

Monkeypox is a viral infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus, characterized by fever, general intoxication and the appearance of exanthema.

Typical symptoms of monkeypox include a skin rash or mucous membrane lesions that can last for 2-4 weeks and are accompanied by fever, headache, muscle pain, back pain, weakness, and swollen lymph nodes.

The incubation period lasts from 5 to 21 days.

The disease begins acutely, with an increase in body temperature, headache and muscle pain, dizziness, nausea, vomiting are possible, and then a rash appears.

The source of infection is monkeys.

Transmission of monkeypox from animals to humans occurs from infected animals through bites or scratches, or through certain activities such as hunting, skinning, trapping, cooking, handling carcasses, or eating animal meat.

The disease is not highly contagious, but there are cases of transmission of the infection from person to person through prolonged contact (airborne and contact-household transmission routes, including sexual transmission).

There is no vaccine against monkeypox, but previous mass vaccination against smallpox has created a significant immune layer of the population that can help stop the spread of the infection.