Monkeypox

The monkey chickenpox virus was detected in 1958, spread in many animal species, and in 1970 the first human case of the virus was identified in a 9-year-old child, spreading in Central African countries such as Nigeria and Congo. Thousands are infected, with about 6,000 infected annually, of whom only 3,000 are from Nigeria.

Monkeypox from the family of smallpox virus that infects humans, and causes some mild symptoms.

Symptoms of Monkeypox:

- Fever

- Body pain

- Chills

- Fatigue.

- Characteristic rash

These symptoms appear within 5 days of contracting the virus, and those infected are cured within 4 weeks without requiring medical attention, and may lead to death but a very small proportion (1 in 10 individuals).

If the situation is serious, it is useful to take the smallpox vaccine, which has proved effective against the virus, and antiviral drugs are also effective.

People outside Africa are rarely infected, but in 2003 47 were diagnosed with chickenpox in the United States, they picked up the virus from dogs brought in from Ghana, as well as the virus spreading through direct and close contact with the animal, or infected person.

Accordingly, health organizations in Europe have announced that there are more than 100 cases of chickenpox at present and in different countries on the continent such as Britain. Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal and Spain, where the first case in England was diagnosed on 7 May of a person returning from Nigeria, However, the rest of the cases did not visit Nigeria once and for all, indicating that the virus spread by communicating with the infected person.

The seriousness of Monkeypox:

According to the British government's Health Office, Monkeypox usually has mild symptoms but may also have serious complications. Epidemiologist Powell Hunter of the University of East Anguilla discounts that currently widespread infections in Europe are leaving deaths, considering this totally unexpected in dialogue with the BBC.

According to the Robert Koch Institute of Infectious Diseases, males and females are equally susceptible to Monkeypox disease, but statistics continue to confirm that the majority of deaths in Africa from Monkeypox are among children.

How the infection travels

The viral disease was first detected in monkeys, and the infection is usually transmitted through close contact and infections are frequent in West and Central Africa. The disease has rarely spread elsewhere, and this new wave of cases outside the African continent has caused concern.

According to the Robert Koch Institute, infections are usually transmitted by friction with infected animals or by the animals' blood and excretion.

Epidemiologist Hunter says in a dialogue with the BBC that infections occur when patients' blisters are transmitted to other people's wounds or eyes, and may also occur through spray-based bodies from the sick person.

Intimate relationships are also among the causes of the spread of Monkeypox among humans, so the European Centre for Disease Prevention warns people who constantly change their sexual partners about the risk of infection.

The majority of the cases recorded so far are of men who have had sex with other men.

Monkeypox Vaccine:

As cases of chickenpox emerged in Britain, the authorities were quick to vaccinate some health care workers and others at risk from the smallpox vaccine.

There is no specific vaccine for chickenpox, but the smallpox vaccine provides some protection.

According to data, vaccines used to eliminate smallpox are up to 85 percent effective against monkeys, according to the World Health Organization. Europe's first case was confirmed on May 7 of a person who returned to England from Nigeria where Monkeypox is endemic.

The African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Africa's largest public health agency, said on Thursday that many Monkeypox outbreaks had been contained on the continent during the COVID-19 pandemic while the world was focusing its attention on coronavirus.

Smallpox has been considered eradicated worldwide since 1980 following a major vaccination campaign.