Pretoria - The National Department of Health has confirmed the second case of monkeypox in South Africa. The patient is a 32-year-old man from Cape Town.
Health Minister Dr Joe Phaahla confirmed the diagnosis on Monday and said that there a high possibility of local transmission.
“The source and linkage of cases remain under investigation and the Department of Health working together with the NICD constantly assess the risk for local transmission in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO) in line with the International Health Regulations.
“Health officials will continue with contact tracing while closely monitoring the situation and alert clinicians on symptoms to look for, and if clinical picture fits with Monkeypox, they are urged to complete case investigation form and send samples to testing,” Phaahla said
While the WHO has not recommended any travel restrictions, Minister Phaahla said it is important for travellers to endemic countries to alert health officials on the situation to enable them to provide guidance for case detection and management.
“Health officials continue with multi-layered screening measures which include visual observation, temperature screening and completion and analysis of travellers’ health questionnaire when entering the country through ports of entry (airports, border gates and sea ports) for early detection and successful treatment.”
The first case of Monkeypox in South Africa was confirmed on June 23, the patient is a 30-year-old man from Johannesburg.
Monkeypox is usually a mild disease manifesting as blisters on the skin. It is usually mild and self-limiting with a fatality rate of 1%.
The disease has previously been reported in African countries such as Nigeria, the DRC, the Central African Republic and Ghana in the early 2000s. The current outbreak is dominated by high numbers in Europe – the UK, Spain, Germany, Portugal and France. Cases have also been reported in the USA and Canada.
IOL