JOHANNESBURG, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The South African Minister of Health Joe Phaahla on Monday urged the public to be vigilant as the country has reported a laboratory-confirmed case of monkeypox disease, also known as Mpox.
The National Department of Health headed by Phaahla said the case involves a 35-year-old male, who resides in the Gauteng province and tested positive on May 9, 2024. The patient had no recent history of traveling.
The case was first tested by Lancet Laboratory, one of the leading pathology laboratories in the country, and then confirmed by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), which then alerted the department
"We urge the public to seek treatment as soon as they see symptoms of monkeypox," health department spokesperson Foster Mohale told Xinhua.
According to the department, Mpox is a rare viral infectious disease in humans caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV).
Although the virus is not highly transmissible from person to person, it has increased in global public health significance and can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes and fever.
The department further noted that Mpox presents with an acute illness characterized by fever and general flu-like symptoms, followed by the eruption of a blister-like rash on the skin.
The disease is rarely fatal and cases typically resolve within two to four weeks and most cases do not require hospital treatment, it added.
The last time South Africa recorded a monkeypox case was in August 2022 when there were cases across the globe. ■