According to the World Health Organization, more than 16,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in 75 countries worldwide since the beginning of May. According to the Robert Koch Institute, 2268 cases of illness were also registered in Germany by Friday. On Saturday, the WHO declared an international health emergency. An overview of the most important questions about the disease.
What is monkey pox?
Monkeypox is an infectious disease originally transmitted from animals to humans primarily by viruses. In Africa, monkeypox has been found in a wide variety of animals, most notably rodents and several species of monkeys. The virus can also be passed from person to person. In 1970, monkeypox was first detected in humans in Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo – a region where smallpox had actually been eradicated two years earlier.
In the spring of 2003, the first cases were reported outside of Africa, in the United States. Since May they have also been spreading to other countries; especially in Western Europe, including Germany.
What symptoms can occur?
The symptoms are similar to those of smallpox. These include fever, headache and muscle pain, chills and swollen lymph nodes. Sometimes very painful skin changes develop in the form of spots and pustules, which crust and fall off over time. The rash mainly appears on the face, palms and soles of the feet. However, skin and mucous membrane changes in the mouth, genitals and eyes are also possible. The skin changes usually last between two and four weeks and heal on their own without treatment.
How is the disease transmitted?
Humans can contract the virus through contact with the blood and other bodily fluids of sick animals. Transmission from person to person is only possible with close contact. The virus is transmitted through droplet infection, wounds, the contents of the blisters and scabs on the skin or body fluids such as saliva. According to a study, 95 percent of current monkeypox cases are due to sexual contact.
The cases reported in Germany almost exclusively concerned men who have sexual contact with other men. Only a handful of cases in women are known in this country. Pregnant women who have contracted monkeypox can pass the virus on to their unborn child. An infection of the baby is also possible at birth.
How dangerous is monkeypox?
Symptoms usually last two to four weeks. Infected people can infect others as long as they have symptoms. In contrast to human smallpox, which has been eradicated since 1980, monkeypox is usually much milder; most people recover within several weeks. However, severe courses can also occur in some of those affected. In particular, newborns, children, pregnant women, the elderly and people with immunodeficiency can become seriously ill.
Possible complications include skin infections, pneumonia, confusion, and eye infections that can lead to vision loss. The amount of viruses to which a patient has been exposed also plays a role in the course of the disease.
Is there a therapy or vaccination?
First and foremost, symptoms are treated. A drug developed to treat so-called orthopox was recently approved in the EU for monkeypox as well. The general smallpox vaccine has also been shown to be 85 percent effective against monkeypox. However, vaccination against smallpox has not been carried out for a long time, as the disease was thought to have been eradicated in the past 40 years.
In Germany, vaccination with the smallpox vaccine Imvanex, which has been approved in the EU since 2013 and is better tolerated than older smallpox vaccines, is recommended for certain risk groups such as homosexual men with frequently changing partners. According to RKI estimates, around 130,000 people in Germany have an indication for vaccination against monkeypox. However, there is currently a lack of vaccine doses.