Monkey Pox In Nigeria: Symptoms, Prevention & How You Can Catch It

A viral disease, monkeypox, has broken out in Yenagoa, Bayelsa capital with no fewer than 11 people under medical surveillance at a state hospital.

It was learnt that a medical doctor and 10 persons suspected to be infected with the monkeypox virus had been quarantined in an isolation centre at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital Okolobiri in Yenagoa Local Government Area of the state.

Outbreak Of Monkey Pox In Nigeria

NCDC Says at least 11 cases of the disease have been identified after an 11-year-old boy in the southern state of Bayelsa presented symptoms in September. A further 32 close contacts are being monitored in case they have caught the virus, the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) said on Thursday.

What Is Monkey Pox

Monkeypox is a viral zoonosis—a disease that is primarily transmitted from animals to humans—that was first identified in humans in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The virus causes symptoms similar to smallpox, but is far less severe than the latter virus, which was eradicated in 1980. Monkeypox occurs primarily in parts of West and Central Africa, and is considered to be endemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

How You Can Catch Monkey Pox In Nigeria

Monkeypox is transmitted to humans not only through monkeys, but other animals too. Rodents—including squirrels and Gambian giant rats—are thought to be the main reservoir of the virus, and people can catch the disease by coming into contact with the bodily fluids of infected animals. Eating undercooked meat from infected animals is also a possible risk factor in transmission.

The virus can also be passed between humans through close physical contact, particularly with secretions from the lesions developed by infected persons. Monkeypox can be passed on from mother to child via the placenta.

Symptoms Of Monkey Pox?

In the first five days after being infected with monkeypox, patients can experience fever, severe headaches, swelling of the lymph nodes, back and muscle pain, and a severe lack of energy. After the fever sets in, sufferers usually develop a distinctive, bumpy rash—similar to but milder than that caused by smallpox—which particularly affects the face, palms of the hands and soles of the feet, but can also appear on the inside of the mouth and on eyeballs and genitalia. The bumps can evolve into fluid-filled blisters and can take three weeks to clear up completely.

Monkey Pox Cure & Prevention

While there is no vaccine for monkeypox—although smallpox vaccines have proved to be effective in preventing the disease—the virus is not usually fatal if patients receive the required treatment and rest. Previous outbreaks have had maximum case fatalities of 10 percent, with most deaths among young children.