First monkeypox case confirmd in Singapore, two suspected in South Korea

Seoul/Singapore, June 22 (EFE).- Singapore has confirmed its first monkeypox infection and South Korea is examining two suspected cases of the virus as the disease spreads across the world.

The patient in Singapore is a 42-year-old flight attendant from the United Kingdom, marking the first instance of monkeypox in Southeast Asia during the ongoing worldwide outbreak of the illness.

The Singapore health ministry said in a statement on Monday night that the man tested positive for the virus on Monday and had often traveled in and out of the city-state in the previous week.

“He is currently warded in at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID), and his condition is stable,” the statement said.

Thirteen close contacts of the infected person have been identified by the health officials, who claimed they would “be placed in quarantine for 21 days.”

Singapore had its last incidence of monkeypox three years ago.

The viral disease of monkeypox can cause skin rashes, fever, headache, muscular pain, back pain, enlarged lymph nodes, chills, and fatigue.

Most patients recover in two to three weeks. However, some individuals may experience complications.

In Seoul, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported on Wednesday that two suspected cases, including one involving a foreign individual, who arrived on Monday, were being looked into by the health authorities.

He went to a hospital in Busan, which is 450 km southeast of Seoul, and complained of a sore throat, skin rashes, and other virus-related symptoms on Tuesday.

The second patient is a South Korean who arrived in Incheon from Germany on Tuesday.

Before arriving in Seoul, he had already started to experience some monkeypox symptoms.

He has been sent by the authorities to Incheon Medical Center.

Monkeypox is rated as a category 2 infectious illness by South Korean authorities on a scale of four.

The South Korean authorities strengthened monitoring in recent weeks after the discovery of cases in nations outside of central and west Africa.

The South Korean protocol calls for isolating and treating infected individuals in specialist facilities.

Close contacts of affected people may be subject to a 21-day quarantine, according to the health officials. EFE

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