A minor has been infected with the monkeypox virus for the first time in Belgium, as per reports on Wednesday evening, based on information from the Sciensano public health institute.
The 16-year-old was not hospitalized, as per reports.
Until now, all confirmed cases of monkeypox in Belgium- 482 had been adults between the age group of 20 and 71. Thus far, 28 of them (7%) have been hospitalized.
Meanwhile, Sciensano warns that a monkeypox infection can also be an atypical clinical profile. Typically, an infected person will first experience mild symptoms, such as fever, headache or muscle aches. Then a skin rash will appear one to three days later.
In the current outbreak, the rash appears mainly in the genital area, but the health institute emphasizes that atypical cases are also possible.
According to a joint report by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), an overall 15,624 cases of monkeypox virus have been recorded so far in European nations, while two patients have died.
The reports have revealed that around 482 people have been tested positive for the virus.
Among other nations, the worst-affected nations are Spain (4,577 infections), the United Kingdom and Germany (both 2,724 cases). Nearly all reported cases – 15,524 out of 15,624 – have been confirmed by laboratory testing.
Around 41% of patients are among the age group of 31 and 40. Nearly all (99.1%) are men. Almost all patients (95%) had a skin rash, while 65% had to deal with symptoms such as fever, fatigue, muscle aches, chills or headache. Only a small percentage of patients – 399 cases or 5.6% – have been hospitalized, including three who were admitted to an intensive care unit. However, one of the three was admitted for a reason other than monkeypox.
Leave a Comment