“No alarm but it's good to know“. After the cases recorded in Florence, we are once again talking about the monkeypox virus and the experts on the site 'doctor, but is it true that…?', promoted by the National Federation of Orders of Surgeons and Dentists ( Fnomceo), reassure by also clarifying various aspects of the Mpox (monkeypox) and answering some questions.
How do you realize you are infected?
“The incubation period (the interval between infection and onset of symptoms) of monkeypox is generally understood between 6 and 13 days, but it can vary from 5 to 21 days – they recall -. The infection can be divided into two periods: initially (from the beginning to 5 days) fever, severe headache, swelling of the lymph nodes (lymphadenopathy), back pain, muscle pain and an intense lack of energy (asthenia ). Lymphadenopathy is a distinctive feature of monkeypox compared to other diseases that may initially appear similar (chickenpox, measles, smallpox).”
Symptoms
“The rash usually begins within three days of the onset of fever and tends to be more concentrated on the face and extremities rather than the trunk. It affects the face (in 95% of cases), the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet (in 75% of cases). The oral mucous membranes (in 70% of cases), the genitals (30%) and the conjunctivae (20%) can also be affected, as well as the cornea. The rash progresses sequentially from macules (lesions with a flat base) to papules (solid, slightly raised lesions), vesicles (lesions filled with clear fluid), pustules (lesions filled with yellowish fluid), and crusts that dry out, they warn. and they fall. The number of lesions varies from a few to several thousand.”
How to treat it
How is the disease caused by the so-called monkeypox treated? “It usually resolves itself, with symptoms lasting two to four weeks – experts respond. – Severe cases occur most commonly among children and are related to the extent of exposure to the virus, the patient's health status and the nature of the complications. Complications of monkeypox may include secondary infections, bronchopneumonia, sepsis, encephalitis, and corneal infection resulting in vision loss.”
Is the vaccine necessary?
Is someone who was vaccinated with smallpox as a child protected from monkeypox? “It's reasonable to think that people who have undergone vaccination at the time have a certain degree of protection against monkeypox. A systematic review of the literature published in 2020 – the doctors clarify – found that in 80-96% of cases the people infected with the monkeypox virus were not vaccinated: it is an interesting fact but it does not allow us to draw firm conclusions because the disease is widespread mainly in Africa where, also due to the shorter average lifespan, the percentage of the population vaccinated against smallpox is now very small”.
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