After the Corona epidemic Everything about the dangerous disease monkeypox that has now begun to spread in countries around the world
Days after the United Kingdom, Portugal and Spain discovered several cases of monkeypox. The World Health Organization warned that at least dozens of people have been infected with the virus from parts of Africa, although the final diagnosis has not yet been confirmed. What are the symptoms of this infection? How much should we care about it? How is it transmitted? Is there a cure? We answer all these questions in the lines below.
It is a virus belonging to the large poxvirus family, of which smallpox is part (although less dangerous, transmissible and deadly), "the greatest epidemic in human history that could have caused between 500 and 1,000 million deaths", underlines José Antonio López Guerrero, director of the Neurovirology Group of the Department of Molecular Biology at the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM). Keep in mind that smallpox was eradicated by vaccination in the 1980s.
The specialist explains that this disease, which is endemic in Africa, is zoonotic, meaning that we humans share it with other vertebrates.
- How is it transmitted?
Monkeypox can be transmitted from monkeys to humans through close contact. “Once the virus is transmitted to us, we can become infected through bodily fluids,” Lopez explains. The disease has been particularly prevalent in gay men, he adds, though “that doesn’t mean it can’t be transmitted between men and women, as well as through direct contact with exotic animals.”
Likewise, Fernando de la Calle, spokesman for the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC), points out that the infection can be transmitted to you through "contact with the skin of a person who has a rash as a result of the disease". Respiratory droplets can also be responsible for the infection if you live close to an infected person. Of course, the microbiologist explains that, unlike Covid-19, in this case there would be no talk of transmission through the respiratory tract.
“The coronavirus spreads easily through the air and this one is more by contact, so its transmission is more complicated. In addition, we know that it is a pathogen of this DNA, that is, it will not mutate as much as Covid-19,” says José Ramos Vivas, professor of microbiology and researcher at the European Atlantic University.
What are its symptoms?
General symptoms of the disease, which usually occur before the rash, include:
- Fever
- Muscle pain.
- Fatigue.
- What is the incubation period?
The incubation period, Lopez emphasizes, will depend on the infected person, the dose received, and their immune system. Taking these variables into account, “the incubation period generally lasts between one and two weeks, although it has been shown that it can range from 5 to 21 days.”
How dangerous is it?
In Africa, the mortality rate ranges between 4 and 22%, according to the blog of microbiologist Raul Rivas. Of course, as the specialists interviewed warned, the sanitary conditions there are not comparable to those in Europe, for example. Therefore, it is still difficult to assess the complications that this infection can cause.
However, Lopez points out that despite the fact that unknown symptoms may appear as cases increase, “the prognosis is usually good, and after those two weeks of illness, the immune response is usually effective.”
In addition, Ramos stresses, of course, that the people affected are under the age of fifty, because those over that age "are protected by the smallpox vaccine, which theoretically protects well against this virus."
- Should we be worried about the spread of this disease?
De la Calle points out that these small infections, which first occurred in the United Kingdom, Portugal and now Spain, generate “well-understood” concerns, in the sense that it is normal to be on the alert before the emergence of a pathogen that is not yet known. He adds: “You do not have to be very afraid, but this concern implies that it is reasonable to establish containment measures at this stage if cases are confirmed.”
For his part, López stated that "at the moment, the concern does not go beyond the epidemiological monitoring of official agencies. For the rest, there should be no panic because, among other things, it would be of little use."
-Is there a cure?
Currently, there is no cure for monkeypox, although there are some antiviral drugs, but because it is a unique disease in humans, there are no well-developed studies with enough patients to determine a cure.”