- Singapore has reported its first ever case of monkeypox virus.It was brought in by a Nigerian man thought to have contracted the rare virus by eating bushmeat at a wedding.
- Monkeypox virus(MPXV) is an orthopoxvirus that causes a viral disease with symptoms in humans similar but milder to those seen in smallpox patients.
- Smallpox was declared eradicated in 1980, whereas human monkeypox is endemic in villages of Central and West Africa.The occurrence of cases is often found close to tropical rainforests where there is frequent contact with infected animals.
- However,there is no evidence to date that person-to-person transmission alone can sustain monkeypox in the human population.Monkeypox is transmitted from animals to humans through contact with the blood, bodily fluids, or cutaneous or mucosal lesions of infected animals.
- Human infections have been documented through the handling of infected monkeys.Gambian giant rats and squirrels with rodents being the most likely reservoir of the virus.
- There are no specific treatments or vaccines available for monkeypox virus infection but outbreaks can be controlled
Singapore reports first case of rare monkeypox virus
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