Scientists have revealed a symptom that is believed to be the first sign of monkeypox infection.
New Delhi: Although there has been a slight decline in cases of monkeypox, experts have warned to follow precautions and be aware of the disease. Scientists have revealed a symptom that is believed to be the first sign of monkeypox infection. Ulcers at the corners of the mouth have now been documented by researchers as the first symptom of monekipox.
German researchers have now presented the case of a 51-year-old HIV-positive patient who developed an ulcer in the corner of his mouth as the first sign of monkeypox virus infection. Recent infection with monkeypox virus may initially present with very few pronounced clinical symptoms and signs of infection, and only a few skin vesicles may appear.
According to Stephen Slab, Bonn University Hospital, Department of Medicine, and colleagues, the patient presented to his general practitioner with a vesicle in the left corner of the mouth that had appeared a day earlier, news agency IANS reported.
“He had no clinical signs of infection; His HIV infection was well controlled both virologically and immunologically with antiretroviral therapy for years,” said the study published in the journal Deutsche Arzteblatt International.
Initially, the patient’s ulcer was treated with a topical compound ointment. Within days, he developed a painful ulcer in the left corner of his mouth and went back to his general practitioner. A swab was taken from the ulcer. “Testing by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) confirmed monkeypox virus. An increase in monkeypox vesicles was then noted on the skin, but also on the palate,” the researchers noted.
With increasing swelling at the base of the tongue and muffled speech, it was decided to hospitalize the patient for antiviral treatment with tacovirimate, they added. The monkeypox outbreak continues to be a global health emergency, the highest level of alert according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Nearly 80,000 cases have been reported in 106 countries so far, with 36 deaths.
