HealthcareNew clinical symptoms identified in largest international case series...

New clinical symptoms identified in largest international case series of confirmed monkeypox cases


monkeypox
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A case series which is the result of an international collaboration across 16 countries is published today (21 July 2022) in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). The study identifies new clinical symptoms of monkeypox infection, which will aid future diagnosis and help to slow the spread of infection. It was carried out in response to the emerging global health threat and is the largest case series to date, reporting on 528 confirmed infections at 43 sites between 27 April and 24 June 2022.

The current spread of the virus disproportionately affects gay and bisexual men, with 98% of infected persons from this group. Although sexual closeness is the most likely route of transmission in most of these cases, researchers stress that the virus can be transmitted by any close physical contact through large respiratory droplets and potentially through clothing and other surfaces.

There is a of both vaccines and treatments for human infection. The findings of this study, including the identification of those most at risk of infection, will help to aid the global response to the virus. Public health interventions aimed at the high-risk group could help to detect and slow the spread of the virus. Recognizing the disease, contact tracing and advising people to isolate will be key components of the public health response.

Many of the infected individuals reviewed in the study presented with symptoms not recognized in current medical definitions of monkeypox. These symptoms include single genital lesions and sores on the mouth or anus. The clinical symptoms are similar to those of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and can easily lead to misdiagnosis. In some people, anal and oral symptoms have led to people being admitted to hospital for management of pain and difficulties swallowing. This is why it’s so important that these new clinical symptoms be recognized and be educated on how to identify and manage the disease—misdiagnosis can slow detection and thus hinder efforts to control the spread of the virus. The study will therefore lead to increased rates of diagnosis when persons from at-risk groups present with traditional STI symptoms.

Public health measures—such as enhanced testing and education—should be developed and implemented working with at-risk groups to ensure that they are appropriate, non-stigmatizing, and to avoid messaging that could drive the outbreak underground.

Chloe Orkin, Professor of HIV Medicine at Queen Mary University of London and Director of the SHARE collaborative, said, “Viruses know no borders and monkey pox infections have now been described in 70 countries and in more than 13,000 people. This truly global case series has enabled doctors from 16 countries to share their extensive clinical experience and many clinical photographs to help other doctors in places with fewer cases. We have shown that the current international case definitions need to be expanded to add symptoms that are not currently included, such as sores in the mouth, on the anal mucosa and single ulcers. These particular symptoms can be severe and have led to hospital admissions so it is important to make a diagnosis. Expanding the case definition will help doctors more easily recognize the infection and so prevent people from passing it on. Given the global constraints on vaccine and anti-viral supply for this chronically underfunded, neglected tropical infection, prevention remains a key tool in limiting the global spread of human monkeypox infection.”

Dr. John Thornhill, Consultant Physician in Sexual Health and HIV and Clinical Senior Lecturer at Barts NHS Health Trust and Queen Mary University of London, said, “It is important to stress that monkeypox is not a sexually transmitted in the traditional sense; it can be acquired through any kind of close physical contact. However, our work suggests that most transmissions so far have been related to —mainly, but not exclusively, amongst men who have sex with men. This research study increases our understanding of the ways it is spread and the groups in which it is spreading which will aid rapid identification of new cases and allow us to offer prevention strategies, such as vaccines, to those individuals at higher risk.

“In addition, we identified new clinical presentations in people with monkeypox. While we expected various skin problems and rashes, we also found that one in ten people had only a single skin lesion in the genital area, and 15% had anal and/or rectal pain. These different presentations highlight that monkeypox infections could be missed or easily confused with common sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis or herpes. We therefore suggest broadening the current case definitions.

“We have also found monkeypox virus in a large proportion of the semen samples tested from people with monkeypox. However, this may be incidental as we do not know that it is present at a high enough levels to facilitate sexual transmission. More work is needed to understand this better.”

Keletso Makofane, MPH, Ph.D., Health and Human Rights Fellow at Harvard University, said, “Wherever the monkeypox virus has shown up, it has tested the ability of our public health systems to respond decisively and urgently during an emergency. It is gratifying to be part of a collective which has worked furiously to gather and share information with each other and with the global public health community.”


UK: Monkeypox cases rise to 1,735 with most cases in London


More information:
Monkeypox Virus Infection in Humans across 16 Countries—April–June 2022, New England Journal of Medicine (2022). DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2207323

Citation:
New clinical symptoms identified in largest international case series of confirmed monkeypox cases (2022, July 21)
retrieved 22 July 2022
from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-07-clinical-symptoms-largest-international-case.html

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.





Original Source Link

Latest News

Broadband knocks Tesla out of Magnificent 7

With hardly anyone noticing, a tech titan you’ve probably never heard of has booted Tesla out of the...

XRP price falls 15% in 3 days — Will Ripple’s legal setback mark the bottom? 

XRP could see a 4,000% rally in the next bull market cycle, according to a fractal pattern reminiscent...

EU countries set to greenlight tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles

This article is an on-site version of our Europe Express newsletter. Premium subscribers can sign up here to...

A look at Google NotebookLM's Audio Overview feature, which was built by Google Labs and has gone viral thanks to its the Deep Dive...

Ben Cohen / Wall Street Journal: A look at Google NotebookLM's Audio Overview feature, which was built by...

Trump Rally Turned a Voter Into a Kamala Harris Voter Because of His Insults and Being Late

Going to a Donald Trump rally turned at least one attendee into a Kamala Harris supporter. At a Las...

A transatlantic flight may turn Saharan dust into a key ocean nutrient

As dust from the Sahara blows thousands of kilometers across the Atlantic Ocean, it becomes progressively more nutritious...

Must Read

U.S.-Funded Armies Fight Each Other In Lebanon

It's a story that has happened before in...

Israel Prepares Incursion Into Lebanon As Biden Stands By

Israel has told the U.S. it is planning...
- Advertisement -

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended to you