It is a time of increased vigilance as a lab in India has recently confirmed a case of Monkey pox. Kerala has now confirmed the first case of the disease in a 35 year old man. He recently came in contact with a confirmed case on his recent visit to UAE.
What you need to know about Monkey pox Virus
Its origin
The Monkey pox virus is an Ortho pox virus which is referred to as a genius virus. It is a viral zoonotic disease that occurs primarily in tropical rainforest areas of central and West Africa and is sometimes exported to other regions also.
Monkey pox virus infection has been detected in some species of Monkeys. It also includes other species like Squirrels, Gambian poached rats and dormice.
It causes symptoms similar to smallpox although they are less severe .
According to the WHO, cases occur close to tropical rainforest inhabited by animals that carry this virus.
It can also affect humans as this is a zoonosis, that is, a disease that is transmitted from infected animals to humans .
Symptoms
Seeing virus Incubation period ( interval from infection to onset of symptoms) is usually from 6 to 13 days but can range from 5 to 21 days .
The invasion period is characterized by Fever intense headache , Lymphadenopathy ( swelling of the lymph nodes) , back pain , muscle aches , and lack of energy .
Can fell skin eruption usually that begins within 1 – 3 days of the appearance of Fever .
Prevention
By raising awareness of risk factors and educate people about the measures they can take to reduce exposure to the virus is the strategy to prevent Monkey pox .
• Reduce the risk of human – to – human transmission .
• Preventing monkey pox through reducing the risk of zoonotic transmission .
• Government’s restriction on animal trade .
Vaccination For Monkey pox
A new vaccine based on a modified attention vaccine virus ( Ankara strain ) was approved for the prevention of monkey pox in 2019 . This is a two – dose vaccine and its availability remains limited .
