A Bavarian Nordic A/S laboratory near Munich. Photo Credit: Jynneos is a drug made by the company and approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the preve
Haiti is the first Caribbean country to flag a suspected case of Monkeypox, ever since the World Health Organization raised the alarm about outbreaks popping up around the globe. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that most of the 21 cases identified in the U.S. were among men who have sex with men who had recently traveled abroad.
Relative to the Haiti suspected case, Dr. Lauré Adrien, director general of Haiti's Public Health Ministry, said on Tuesday that the suspected case was discovered on May 27, after a patient presented themselves to a health facility in Saint Marc.
Dr. Samson Marseille, director of the Department of Epidemiology in Haiti, told the press that the individual was tested and was awaiting results from the National Public Health Laboratory.
Due to the nature of the tests that need to be conducted, specimens from the patient had to be transferred to a lab in the United States, and Haitian authorities say that they do not currently know exactly when the results will be returned.
Marseille also said that this is likely to be just the first detected by health officials, with more monkeypox cases expected to crop up. He pointed to a pending investigation into another suspected case, flagged among a group of recently-repatriated nationals residing in Cap Haitien. Health officials initially thought it to be a case of scabies, a skin condition caused by tiny burrowing mites which causes intense itching.
The woman in question has not been isolated, but remains in touch with health authorities as her condition develops.
Haiti's Epidemiology Department is urging the population not to panic in light of the possible presence of monkeypox in Haiti, citing the disease’s low fatality rate, despite it being very contagious.
Regarding the cases in the U.S., federal officials said Friday they were working to curtail the spread of the virus while simultaneously raising awareness.
According to the CDC, at least 16 of the U.S. cases were people who identify as gay, bisexual or men who have sex with men. Even so, monkeypox isn’t considered a sexually transmitted infection, the CDC said.
“The high proportion of initial cases diagnosed in this outbreak in persons who identify as gay, bisexual, or other men who have sex with men might simply reflect an early introduction of monkeypox into interconnected social networks,” the CDC said.
CDC's deputy director of the division of high-consequence pathogens and pathology, Jennifer McQuiston, said most confirmed cases in the U.S. said they had traveled internationally in the 21 days before the onset of their symptoms.
What is monkeypox?
According to WSJ, monkeypox is a viral disease that circulates mostly among rodents in parts of West and Central Africa. The disease was first discovered in 1958 when two outbreaks of a pox-like disease occurred in research monkeys, hence its name.
The first case in humans was recorded in 1970, in a 9-year-old boy in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Most cases since have been reported from rural, rainforest regions of the Congo Basin, although it has been detected in several countries in West and Central Africa. Nigeria, for example, typically reports a few dozen cases a year, WSJ said.
What are the symptoms?
According to Scientific American, monkeypox produces smallpox-like skin lesions, but symptoms are usually milder than those of smallpox. Flu-like symptoms are common initially, ranging from fever and headache to shortness of breath. One to 10 days later, a rash can appear on the extremities, head or torso that eventually turns into blisters filled with pus. Overall, symptoms usually last for two to four weeks, while skin lesions usually scab over in 14 to 21 days.
How does monkeypox spread?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, transmission of monkeypox virus occurs when a person comes into contact with the virus from an animal, human, or materials contaminated with the virus. The virus enters the body through broken skin (even if not visible), respiratory tract, or the mucous membranes (eyes, nose, or mouth). Animal-to-human transmission may occur by bite or scratch, bush meat preparation, direct contact with body fluids or lesion material, or indirect contact with lesion material, such as through contaminated bedding. Human-to-human transmission is thought to occur primarily through large respiratory droplets. Respiratory droplets generally cannot travel more than a few feet, so prolonged face-to-face contact is required. Other human-to-human methods of transmission include direct contact with body fluids or lesion material, and indirect contact with lesion material, such as through contaminated clothing or linens.
Can contracting monkeypox lead to death?
While in most instances people who contract the disease recover in for 2−4 weeks, monkeypox can be deadly. According to the CDC, in Africa, monkeypox has been shown to cause death in as many as 1 in 10 persons who contract the disease.
How is monkeypox treated?
There is currently no proven, safe treatment for monkeypox virus infection, however vaccination against smallpox, which is closely related to monkeypox, has been shown to protect against the disease. According to the CDC, data from Africa suggests that the smallpox vaccine is at least 85 percent effective at preventing monkeypox. Vaccination soon after exposure might also help prevent the disease or make it less severe, according to WSJ.
Should America and its territories be worried about a monkeypox outbreak?
The CDC says U.S. monkeypox cases are very rare, and that it does not occur naturally in the United States but cases have happened that were associated with international travel or importing animals from areas where the disease is more common.
At least one case involved a woman who had recently traveled overseas, Dr. McQuiston said.
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