The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) confirms a second case of monkeypox in South Africa

On Tuesday, June 28, 2022, a second case of monkeypox was confirmed by laboratory testing at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), a division of the National Health Laboratory Service. A 32-year-old male who lives in the Western Cape Province is the subject of the case. He says he hasn’t traveled recently.

To find any additional related cases of monkeypox in South Africa, contact tracing has started. Transmission can be stopped and the cycle of transmission can be broken by isolating confirmed cases. It is currently unknown whether the first and second cases are connected.

More than 4,000 people from several European nations, the USA, Canada, Australia, Morocco, and the United Arab Emirates have been diagnosed with monkeypox since May 2022. This outbreak of monkeypox is the first one to span multiple nations and is already the biggest one ever seen.

Close contact with an infected person or objects that have been tainted by an infected person is required for person-to-person transmission. Despite the fact that the data suggests that people who have multiple sexual partners are more likely to contract monkeypox, anyone can get the disease if they have had close contact with an infected person. The virus is not easily spread and requires close physical contact to spread.

A fever and other flu-like symptoms are the primary symptoms of monkeypox, which then progresses to the skin eruption of a blister-like rash. Rarely do cases of the illness result in death, and recovery usually takes two to four weeks.

The majority of cases don’t need hospital care. Isolating patients until they are fully recovered is essential for infection prevention. Due to the virus’s low potential for transmission, the risk to the general populace is regarded as low.

The NICD will keep upping its vigilance for cases with contact tracing and monitoring of laboratory-confirmed cases in accordance with WHO recommendations. To learn more, go here.