Monday
18th Nov 2024
Dhivehi Edition
Director-General of Public Health Maimoona Aboobakr. Photo: TMJ
Health Protection Agency (HPA) has stated that there was a low risk of monkeypox spreading in the country.
A press release issued by HPA said that they were closely monitoring the situation, after outbreaks were reported in the United Kingdom. World Health Organization (WHO) has recorded 93 cases from 12 countries up to Saturday.
HPA noted that no cases were reported from neighboring countries. The agency also added that risk of spread was, at the moment, low as the disease spreads from person-to-person contact.
Nevertheless, HPA had asked all to be aware, and to implement personal safety measures. This includes wearing masks and regular disinfections, adding that if suspected, to seek medical treatment.
Monkeypox can be caught from infected wild animals in parts of west and central Africa. It's thought to be spread by rodents, such as rats, mice and squirrels. You can catch monkeypox from an infected animal if you're bitten or you touch its blood, body fluids, spots, blisters or scabs.
It may also be possible to catch monkeypox by eating meat from an infected animal that has not been cooked thoroughly, or by touching other products from infected animals (such as animal skin or fur).
Monkeypox can also be spread through touching clothing, bedding or towels used by someone with the monkeypox rash, touching monkeypox skin blisters or scabs and by the coughs or sneezes of a person with the monkeypox rash.
It takes between five to 21 days for symptoms to appear. The symptoms include, high temperature, headaches, muscle aches, backaches, swollen glands, chills and exhaustion. A rash usually appears 1 to 5 days after the first symptoms. The rash often begins on the face, then spreads to other parts of the body.
The rash is sometimes confused with chickenpox. It starts as raised spots, which turn into small blisters filled with fluid. These blisters eventually form scabs which later fall off. The symptoms usually clear up in 2 to 4 weeks.
HPA said that there was no direct treatment for monkeypox. But, treating the symptoms usually worked for most individuals.