What's a monkey's line? The new virus that emerged in Europe today

The World Health Organization has declared monkey smallpox, spread in Congo and other parts of Africa, a global public health emergency. Leftypox is usually an easy disease, but it can cause rashation and inflammation in the face and hands, spreading to other parts of the body, and in some cases it can be fatal.

Within a medical center in Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, medical teams are trying to identify patients ill with monkey smallpox, as patients affected in this city grow ever more.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization declared monkey smallpox, which has spread to Congo and other Afika countries, a global public health emergency. The decision came after confirmation that children and adults in more than 13 countries have been affected by monkey smallpox, while a new version of viral infection has spread.

The monkey's line has been reported to the Democratic Republic of Congo for more than a decade, and the number of reported cases each year has increased gradually over this period. Last year, it was reported for a significant increase in cases and currently the number of cases so far is higher than the total number of cases last year, with more than 14,000 affected and 524 dead”, World Health Organisation General Director Tedros Adhanom Ghenrees said.

Earlier this year, scientists announced the release of a new version of monkey oak in a mining town in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which could cause death of up to 10 percent of the people affected and more quickly spread.

Ape's line spreads mainly through close contact with infected persons, including intimate relationships.

Unlike earlier cases of the monkey's oak eruption, where inflammation appeared mainly on the chest, hands, and feet, the new version has lighter symptoms and causes inflammation in the genital organs. This makes it harder to identify the virus, which means that people can transmit the disease to others without knowing they're infected.

“It is very important to have more data on the disease in countries that have spread and countries that are at risk. We need to understand better how the disease is transmitted, which group is most endangered, and how the virus develops. If we understand the disease better, then we can effectively and to a certain group, that limited number of vaccines that we have available”, says Maria Van Kerkhov, director of the department for preventing epidemics and pandemics near O BSH's.

What's a monkey's line?

The monkey's line was first identified by scientists in 1958 when an infection similar to “line” erupted in monkeys. Until recently, people's contact with this viral infection was marked in central and western Africa, where the population had more contact with the affected animals.

In 2022 the spread of the virus through intimate relations was first confiscated, and the virus spread to more than 70 countries worldwide that had not previously reported the presence of this disease.

Monkeypoke is the same category as smallpox, but it causes easier symptoms, such as fever, trembling, and body pain. The hardest - affected people may have a rash or a swelling on their faces, hands, breasts, and genital organs.

It's a viral disease that's very common in central and western Africa and it spreads mainly to rodents. And from time to time, it affects other animals like monkeys and affects people”, explains Jorge Ororio, Global Institute of Health at Wisconsin-Madison University.

Despite the monkey's “ ”, it is likely not monkeys but rodents who cause the disease.

The first case identified to a man with a monkey line belongs to 1970. Infected was a young man from a remote area of Congo.

How serious is monkey line for people?

The World Health Organization estimates that sickness can be fatal for one in 10 persons.

What are the symptoms?

Most of the patients with monkey smallpox have only fever, body pain, trembling, and fatigue.

The heavyest touch may be reddening or swelling on the face and hands that can spread to other parts of the body.

Most people recover in a period of between two and four weeks without having to be hospitalized. Ape may be fatal to some affected and are thought to be more serious in children.

Speaking in 2022, Dr. Olivia Casey, a public health official in Sacramento County, California, explained that a patient can spread the infection until all inflammation has been healed.

“A person is considered infected from the beginning of symptoms until skin rashes have taken hold of crust and crust have fallen and a new layer of skin. The spread of the disease is largely due to salivas, rashes, or clothes or bed beds contaminated”, she said.

How do you treat yourself?

There are two vaccines licensed for monkey smallpox in countries like the United States, Canada and Europe. There are also at least two antivirus drugs licensed for use by people with serious diseases.

What do we know about the last case of the monkey oak?

The Africa Center for Prevention and Control of Diseases said that monkey smallpox has been identified in 13 countries this year and that 96 percent of all cases and deaths have been recorded in Congo. Compared to last year, the number of affected has increased by 160 percent and the death toll by 19 percent.

So far, 14,000 cases have been identified and 524 people have died.

The director of the Committee of Emergencys against Monkey Oak said cases were reported in countries such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Kenya, countries that had not been affected before. / VOA/