Clinical and epidemiological features of monkeypox

Cangahuala R.J.B.; Chaca M.D.; Quispe P.M.H.; Gago D.O. · Boletin de Malariologia y Salud Ambiental (2022) · DOI: 10.52808/bmsa.7e6.625.002

Resumen

Monkeypox (MPX) is a viral, zoonotic disease that mainly affects primates and is transmitted to humans. This virus was initially isolated from a laboratory monkey in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970 and since then has circulated on the African continent, mainly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Republic of the Congo; during the last five decades. Since 2003, cases have been reported outside of Africa, specifically in the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, and Singapore; while in May 2022, the WHO; reported an outbreak of human MPX in several countries in Europe and America, with more than 38,000 cases in 93 countries and five deaths in Africa, in addition to the absence of direct links with endemic countries and a change in the pattern of transmission; which led the agency to declare the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. MPX presents with fever, headache, myalgia, lymphadenopathy, and skin lesions; and although the disease is not easily transmissible with a tendency to spontaneous healing; the cases currently observed are not typical, with lesions similar to those produced by smallpox. This review aims to update knowledge about the clinical and epidemiological features of MPX, to understand the presentation of the current outbreak and provide tools that allow effective diagnosis and treatment of affected patients.

Instituciones: Universidad Peruana Los Andes; Universidad Nacional de Cañete; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Chota