On September 16, 1 imported case of monkeypox was confirmed in Chongqing, China. The case is an inbound person who transferred from abroad to Chongqing. During the centralized isolation of the inbound personnel for the prevention and control of the new coronary pneumonia epidemic, symptoms such as rash were found. After the laboratory test of the Chongqing Center for Disease Control and the review of the China Center for Disease Control, the laboratory result monkey The pox virus nucleic acid was positive, and Chinese experts diagnosed it as a confirmed case of monkeypox. The case is quarantined and controlled upon entering Chongqing, and there is no social activity trajectory, and the risk of epidemic transmission is low.

Monkeypox has previously been declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the monkeypox epidemic statistics released by the World Health Organization on August 31 showed that the cumulative number of confirmed cases of monkeypox in the world reached 50,496, and the cumulative number of deaths was 16.

The WHO said monkeypox outbreaks are now slowing in Canada and parts of Europe, but the number of infections is still rising in some countries in the Americas. In response to the monkeypox epidemic, many countries have adopted prevention and control measures such as purchasing a large number of monkeypox vaccines and strengthening monkeypox virus monitoring.

According to data updated by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the 13th, the United States has reported a total of 22,630 confirmed cases of monkeypox, the highest number of cases in the world. The top three regions reporting confirmed cases of monkeypox were California, New York, and Florida, with 4,300 cases in California.

What is monkeypox? How did it spread?

The main source of infection for monkeypox transmission is rodents and primates infected with monkeypox virus, including monkeys, chimpanzees, and humans.

Viruses enter the human body through mucous membranes and broken skin. Humans are mainly infected with the virus through contact with infected animal lesion exudates, blood, and other body fluids, or by being bitten or scratched by infected animals. The virus is mainly transmitted from person to person through close contact, and contact with virus-contaminated items may also be infected, and it can also be transmitted vertically through the placenta. Droplet transmission of the virus has yet to be confirmed, but it will not be transmitted through aerosols.

Monkeypox is not historically a sexually transmitted disease, but about 95% of the cases reported in Europe and the United States are infected with monkeypox through sexual behavior. Among them, men who have sex with men have the highest risk of monkeypox infection.

There has also been an increase in cases in children. A confirmed case of monkeypox virus in a child means that anyone can become infected with monkeypox virus through close skin-to-skin contact. In children, infection with monkeypox virus may be spread through close contact, such as cuddling, and sharing items such as towels, cups, utensils, and bedding.

What are the symptoms of monkeypox?

After being infected with monkeypox virus, the incubation period is about 2 to 3 weeks, with an average of 12 days, followed by high fever, headache, back pain, general malaise, cough, swollen lymph nodes, and occasionally abdominal pain. Complications such as bacterial infection, pulmonary infection, sepsis, and respiratory distress syndrome can also be complicated in the course of the disease.

1. Typical symptoms

The clinical manifestations of monkeypox are similar to those of smallpox, but the symptoms are generally milder. The course of the disease can be divided into invasive stage and skin eruption stage.

1. Invasive phase: characterized by fever, severe headache, lymphadenopathy, swollen lymph nodes, back pain, myalgia, and extreme weakness.

2. Skin rash period: The rash can occur all over the body, 95% of the cases have the rash on the face, 75% of the cases have the rash on the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet, and the rash occurs almost at the same time on the body. For about 10 days, the rash develops from maculopapular rash to blisters, pustules, and finally a crust. For 3 weeks, the crusts fell off and disappeared.

Second, other symptoms

The lesions of the systemic lesions range from several to thousands of different sites, with 70% of the cases injuring the oral mucosa, 30% of the cheeks, and 20% of the eyes, face and cornea. Monkeypox symptoms usually last 14 to 21 days.

The severity of monkeypox

Monkeypox is a self-limiting disease, and most infected people recover within a few weeks. Severe cases are common in young children, immunocompromised people, and death can occur.

A comprehensive analysis of historical data shows that the fatality rate of monkeypox is about 8.7%, of which 10.6% in Central Africa and 3.6% in West Africa. The reasons for the difference in monkeypox mortality in Central and West Africa remain unclear.

The case fatality rate for monkeypox cases reported as of August 2022 was approximately 0.03%, and the five reported deaths were all in Africa. The low case fatality rate currently observed is due to the different strains of the virus circulating, the good physical fitness of the European and American populations, or the timely treatment by medical services, which remains to be further studied.