6 deaths related to monkeypox

17 cases of monkeypox have been recorded in 10 southern provinces since the disease appeared in Vietnam in the middle of last year, of which 6 people died.

The information was shared by Dr. Nguyen Vu Thuong, Deputy Director of Pasteur Ho Chi Minh City, at the 2023 epidemic prevention conference in the Southern region, December 22. The North has not yet recorded any cases of monkeypox.

Thus, the death rate related to monkeypox in Vietnam is 5.1%. In mid-December, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that a new strain of monkeypox virus is more dangerous than the strain that appeared last year, with more severe symptoms and a higher death rate, about 10%. In 2022, WHO as well as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), calculated based on data available at that time, the mortality rate of monkeypox is about 0.03%, with 5 cases. over 16,000 deaths recorded globally. This rate is much lower than SARS (10%) and MERS (34%), while the death rate due to Covid is 1-2%, seasonal flu is 0.1-0.2%.

"Monkeypox shows no signs of slowing down," Dr. Thuong said, adding that the disease is still not well controlled in the world, including the Asia-Pacific region. Since November, the number of cases in Ho Chi Minh City has increased rapidly.

BS.CK2 Huynh Thi Thuy Hoa, Head of Department of Internal Medicine, Ho Chi Minh City Hospital of Tropical Diseases, said that in the past three months, the hospital received 49 cases. Of these, 6 severe cases have died, 40 people have been discharged from the hospital, and 3 patients are being treated.

"This death rate does not represent the community," Dr. Hoa said, explaining that Ho Chi Minh City Tropical Diseases is a place that receives seriously ill patients from localities in the South. Many patients have complications such as septic shock, cellulitis, skin abscess, sepsis, liver failure, kidney failure...

Serious patients are all infected with HIV in the AIDS stage and are young (28-30 years old). All were not on ARV treatment to control HIV or had just started treatment. Necrotic skin lesions, extensive ulcers, bacterial superinfection causing cellulitis, severe musculoskeletal abscesses. Since then, patients have sepsis, septic shock, and multi-organ failure, which are the main causes of death.

Among monkeypox cases treated at the hospital, men accounted for 97%, women 3%. Among them, men who have sex with men account for 88%, most do not use condoms when having sex, and many cases are co-infected with syphilis.

According to Dr. Hoa, the main route of transmission for monkeypox is close sexual contact (like HIV transmission), rubbing blisters, having sex with an infected person... In most cases, the disease occurs. on gay men, bisexual men, and people with multiple partners.

Doctor 2 Vu Thi Phuong Thao, Head of the General Planning Department of Ho Chi Minh City Dermatology Hospital, said that most cases discovered at the hospital have systemic symptoms such as fever and swollen lymph nodes. In some cases, blisters and pustules only appear in a few places on the body, such as the face, palms, soles of the feet, genitals... These signs can easily be confused with many other diseases. Many people come to the doctor because they think they have a sexually transmitted disease.

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong forecasts that by 2024, the infectious disease situation in the world and in Vietnam will continue to become complicated, with many potential threats to people's health. Among them, monkeypox is expected to continue to record new cases in high-risk groups.

Monkeypox is considered a re-emerging infectious disease, previously endemic only in Africa. Since April last year, the disease broke out in Europe and the US, then was recorded worldwide. The disease is transmitted directly from person to person through close contact such as skin-to-skin contact (including touching skin with lesions, oral or anal sex), mouth-to-mouth contact, physical contact. mouth - skin (such as oral sex or kissing on the skin), talking closely with someone who is spreading the virus through respiratory droplets, sharing blankets, clothes... with someone who is suffering from smallpox, monkeys also can be infected.

Experts advise not to worry too much because monkeypox does not spread easily to the community. Monkeypox is a disease that can heal on its own within 2 to 4 weeks, except in some cases of immunodeficiency, pregnant women, children... the disease can be more severe. Therefore, people with monkeypox or suspected of having monkeypox need to be examined by a doctor and evaluate their clinical condition to prescribe appropriate treatment.

People should be vigilant and proactive in proactive prevention if they belong to the high-risk group and avoid close contact with people with suspected symptoms. People with suspected symptoms such as acute rash of unknown cause accompanied by one or more other signs such as fever above 38 degrees Celsius, lymphadenopathy (swollen lymph nodes), headache, muscle pain, back pain, weakness ... need to proactively self-isolate, avoid sexual intercourse, contact a medical facility for timely monitoring and advice.

* SOURCE: https://vnexpress.net/6-nguoi-tu-vong-lien-quan-dau-mua-khi-4692020.html