In Austria, there is probably the first case of monkeypox. “The laboratory result of the patient who came to us as a suspected case confirmed that he is positive for smallpox. Sequencing of the smallpox form is still taking place,” said Vienna Health Association (Wigev) spokeswoman Nina Brenner-Küng , the APA late Sunday afternoon. “In all likelihood it will be monkeypox.”
A 35-year-old man was taken to a clinic in Vienna-Favoriten on Sunday night with typical symptoms such as a mild fever and pustules on his face. “He’s been fine so far, he’s been stable. He has skin changes, he has mild flu-like symptoms,” Brenner-Küng said of the man’s health.
According to spokesperson for Councilor for Health Peter Hacker (SPÖ), the patient is in the isolation ward. The sample was analyzed by the University of Veterinary Medicine. However, smallpox is not so easily transmitted, says virologist Redlberger-Fritz. An epidemic or pandemic like other viruses is not to be expected.
WHO develops guidelines
The World Health Organization (WHO) is currently developing guidelines to contain the spread of monkeypox. There are fears that the number of cases could rise further in the summer months, WHO chief adviser on infection risks David Heymann told Reuters on Saturday. The WHO assumes the outbreak was triggered by sexual contact.
So far are smallpox took place in eleven countrieswhere they generally do not spread. Scientists consider this very unusual. Monkeypox occurs mainly in Africa and rarely elsewhere. More than 100 confirmed or suspected cases have been reported so far, most of them in Europe.
Close contact is the most important route of transmission for the virus, Heymann said. For example, parents who care for sick children are at the same risk as healthcare workers. He emphasized that the smallpox outbreak was not comparable to the early days of the coronavirus pandemic because the disease is not so easily transmitted.