INSIDE POLITICS REPORTER
THE Minister of Health Dr Joe Phaahla has urged members of the public to be vigilant after a 35-year-old man from Gauteng tested positive for monkeypox disease also known as Mpox.
In a statement issued on Monday the department said the case was first tested by Lancet Laboratory on 9 May and was later confirmed by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) which immediately notified the department.
According to the department, Mpox is a rare viral infectious disease in humans caused by Monkeypox virus (MPXV).
Although the virus is not highly transmissible from person to person, it has increased in global public health significance and can cause a painful rush, enlarged lymph nodes and fever, the department said in the statement.
According to the department, most people recover although some get very sick.
“The preliminary investigation and case findings show that the patient has no recent travel history to countries experiencing an outbreak of the disease,” the department said.
Mpox is found mostly in Africa but has been seen in other regions of the world. It causes flu-like symptoms such as fever and chills and a rash that can take up to weeks to heal.
INSIDE POLITICS
