Laura Poy Solano
Newspaper La Jornada
Sunday May 29, 2022, p. 8
The Ministry of Health (Ssa) confirmed the first imported case of monkeypox in Mexico. This is a 50-year-old man, with mild symptoms, who is already isolated preventively. The contagion, from a permanent resident of New York City, was detected in Mexico City and probably acquired the disease in the Netherlands, the agency said.
In the morning, the Undersecretary for Prevention and Health Promotion, Hugo López-Gatell, confirmed the case and explained on social media that monkeypox It is spread from person to person by direct contact. It is not spread by air, water or food. The efficiency of contagion is low, so there are generally isolated cases or small outbreaks, not generalized epidemics
.
On May 24, after learning of cases in various countries, the Ssa, through the National Committee for Epidemiological Surveillance, published the notice for monkeypox, so that medical units at all levels of care report suspected cases. identify themselves. After Argentina, Mexico would be the second country in Latin America to confirm a positive case.
Symptoms
The federal agency explained that this disease develops in the first five days of exposure and resolves spontaneously between two and four weeks after the onset of symptoms.
The first phase is characterized by fever, severe headache, lower back and muscle pain, as well as swollen glands and severe fatigue. In the second, small blisters appear that usually start on the face and later spread to the rest of the body.
The Ssa recommends that the population wash their hands frequently with soap and water or an alcohol gel solution. When you are close to a sick person, wear a medical mask, especially if they are coughing or have mouth injuries; wash clothing, towels, eating utensils, and sheets that have come into contact with the patient, using warm water and detergent
.
The spaces where a sick person has been found should be cleaned and disinfected and close contact should be avoided, especially with injuries; if they must be touched, wear gloves and dispose of them. If there are symptoms, seek medical attention and do not approach other people. Restrictions on travel and world trade are not recommended.
Don’t repeat mistakes
Meanwhile, leading infectious disease specialists are pressing for global health authorities to act more quickly to contain the growing outbreak of monkeypox, which has spread to at least 20 countries, and point out that governments and the World Health Organization ( WHO) must not repeat the first mistakes of the covid-19 pandemic, which delayed detection, contributing to the spread of the virus.
Although monkeypox is not as transmissible or dangerous as the coronavirus and there are effective vaccines and treatments, they say, clearer guidance is needed on how an infected person should isolate themselves, more explicit protection advice to those at risk, as well as such as improving testing and contact tracing.
If this becomes endemic (in more countries), we will have another nasty disease and a lot of hard decisions to make
said Isabelle Eckerle of the Geneva Center for Emerging Viral Diseases in Switzerland.
The WHO is studying whether the outbreak should be assessed as a possible public health emergency of international concern, an official said. Determining that an outbreak constitutes a global health emergency, as was the case with Covid or Ebola, would help speed analysis and funding to contain the condition. It is being considered, but there is no emergency committee yet
said Mike Ryan, director of the WHO’s health emergencies program.
However, it is unlikely that the agency will reach that conclusion soon, since it is a known threat and there are tools to combat it, specialists point out. Debating whether to create an emergency committee, the body that recommends declaring a potential emergency of international concern, is part of the agency’s routine response, WHO officials said.
With information from Reuters
