By Daksh kapoor on 27 May 2022
4 mins read
Just when the world recovered from the severity of the Corona-virus or the SARS-CoV-2 COVID-19 outbreak, monkeypox emerged as the recent threat to humans, It started its journey from Africa – and has now spread to atleast 12 countries. The virus, unlike SARS-CoV-2 COVID-19, spreads from animals to humans with symptoms similar to that of smallpox in the 1980s.
Monkeypox is a virus that belongs to the family Poxviridae and is a member of the genus Orthopoxvirus, and is the causative agent of the Monkeypox disease. It is closely related to smallpox with the signs and symptoms being similar to the latter.
The virus was first found in animal species and is known to spread to humans through an animal bite, or blood and fluid from the infected animal. The disease is known to cause skin lesions among other symptoms in the affected individuals.
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In 2021, The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Texas Department of State Health Services confirmed a case in a resident of the United States who recently travelled from Nigeria, bringing the monkeypox virus to Texas. While the virus has paved its way to various countries now in 2022, it was first identified in humans in 1970, somewhere around Congo, Africa, where a 9-year-old boy was diagnosed with the symptoms. Since the 1970’s the cases were identified in and around regions of Africa till 2003, when the virus was identified in the USA and was traced back to the infected pet prairie dogs that were said to have been housed with Gambian pouched rats and dormice that had been imported into the country from Ghana. Since 2003, many cases have been identified of the monkeypox outbreak between 2018-2022.
The virus enters the body through skin abrasions, inhalation of droplets from an infected individual or the mucous membranes in the eyes, nose or mouth. Animal to human transmission is very common in this case, which generally occurs due to direct contact with the blood or body fluid of the infected animal, via the bite of the animal. In Africa, the infected animals consisted of rodents such as:
Apart from this, consuming inadequately cooked meat or other animal products of infected animals also poses an infection threat.
Human-Human transmission of monkeypox, although not very common but is still possible and occurs through blood, mucus or droplets from an infected individual’s coughs or sneezes or even from the surfaces that they might have touched or articles that they might have used such as clothing, towels or bedding
Transmission may also occur from mother to fetus, but it is still unclear if it is transmissible via physical contact. However, rumours are that it spreads due to homosexual relations, health officials have urged the public not to rush to conclusions as monkeypox spreads due to close contact, it may spread through sexual intercourse, but it has not been classified as an STD or a sexually transmitted disease.
While the virus is quite rare for now and usually non-fatal, where one form kills around 10% of infected people, who knows what mutations could do to the virus if it spreads at a faster pace.
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The symptoms usually remain submerged for a long time (~ 1-2 weeks) and the infection lasts for about 2-4 weeks. During this period, various symptoms are visible that are very similar to smallpox, yet milder.
Monkeypox symptoms are characterized by the beginning of flu-like symptoms, among others such as:
1 or 3 days after the onset of fever, skin lesions become visible – that begins with a rash on the face, and spreads to the palms of hands, soles of feet and the surface of the eyeballs. With time, the skin lesions tend to worsen and turn into blisters filled with fluid.
Treatment options, for now, are limited to providing clinical care to alleviate the symptoms and manage complications.
According to WHO -“Patients should be offered fluids and food to maintain adequate nutritional status.”
Vaccination against the virus is limited to the one used for smallpox and is 85% effective in preventing monkeypox. The original smallpox vaccines are not available to the general public, as of now. Yet a few healthcare workers may have received a smallpox vaccine to protect them from the exposure to monkeypox virus (a member of the Orthopoxvirus genus in the family Poxviridae) as they are in direct contact with the patients.
However, a modified attenuated vaccinia virus (Ankara strain) was approved for the prevention of monkeypox in 2019, which is a two-dose vaccine with limited availability.
Since the treatment options are limited and not specific for the disease – Prevention by raising awareness of monkeypox seems to be a judicious strategy. Close contact with the infected individual is the main cause of the spread of the infection, thus protecting the frontline workers via vaccination is the first and foremost step. Care should be taken while handling specimens from patients suspected or confirmed with the monkeypox virus.
As for the general public:
These are some of the measures that can be taken to contain the virus.
Is monkeypox deadly?
For some cases, No, as the current form of the virus is supposed to be milder, with a fatality rate of less than 1%.
How to prevent monkeypox?
In order to prevent oneself from monkeypox
How can monkeypox be transmitted from human to human
Even though monkeypox is mainly spread from animals to humans, human-human contact may be possible by the exchange of body fluids, mucous, blood or droplets from the infected person's coughs or sneezes.
Is monkeypox reported in india
As of now there have been no cases in India, but India has certainly taken precautions and booked wards for the isolation of patients if cases arise.
What is the scientific name of monkeypox?
There is no scientific name for monkeypox, it arises from the monkeypox virus that belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus of the family Poxviridae.
Why the name ‘Monkeypox’?
Monkeypox originated in 1958 when outbreaks of pox-like diseases were found in monkeys kept for research, that is where the name ‘monkeypox’ comes from.
