How to prevent monkeypox virus

Abstract: What is monkeypox virus? Monkeypox is a viral disease of human beings and animals. The symptoms of human beings are similar to those of smallpox patients in the past. At present, there is no specific treatment or vaccine for monkeypox virus, which can generally heal itself, and the mortality rate is between 1% and 10%. So how to prevent monkeypox virus? The following describes the symptoms, transmission routes, treatment and prevention of monkeypox virus. What is monkeypox virus?

Monkeypox is a viral disease of human and animals. Monkeypox virus can be transmitted from animals to people through close contact. Although it is not easy to spread from person to person, it may be infected through close contact with infected people.

1958, monkeypox virus was first discovered in monkeys, so it was named monkeypox, but now rodents are also regarded as possible main animal hosts.

1970, the first case of human monkeypox was found in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since then, there have been many outbreaks of monkeypox in West African countries.

Symptoms of monkeypox virus

1, onset period (0 ~ 5 days)

It is characterized by fever, severe headache, swollen lymph nodes, backache, muscle pain (myalgia) and feeling weak (listlessness).

2, skin eruption period

At this time, rashes at different stages appear on the face, palms, soles and trunk almost at the same time. The rash changes from maculopapules (lesions with flat bottom) to small blisters (blisters filled with liquid) and pustules, and it takes about 10 days to be accompanied by scabbing. It may take three weeks for the scab to disappear completely.

The number of lesions varies from a few to thousands, affecting oral mucosa, genitalia, conjunctiva (eyelid) and cornea (eyeball).

Some patients have severe lymphadenopathy (lymphadenopathy) before the rash appears. The appearance of lymphadenopathy may help to identify monkeypox, because smallpox or chickenpox do not have this feature.

Monkeypox symptoms usually last 14 to 2 1 day.

Transmission route of monkeypox virus

1, the main mode of transmission of monkeypox virus is through direct contact with the blood, body fluids, skin or mucosal wounds of infected animals.

2. The secondary transmission between people is mainly due to close contact with respiratory secretions of infected people, damaged skin or articles (such as clothes, sheets, etc.) contaminated by body fluids or diseased tissues of patients. ).

3. Monkeypox virus can exist in respiratory droplets, but it usually takes a long time for face-to-face contact to spread.

Judging from the overall transmission power of the virus, monkeypox virus is a weak virus, which is mainly transmitted through close contact, so it is not pathogenic to healthy people and does not need to panic.

Monkeypox virus mortality

The pathogenicity of monkeypox is less than smallpox virus, but it can still lead to the death of patients, and the mortality rate is 1%- 10%. Most of the dead were young children.

Monkeypox virus therapy

There is no specific treatment and no vaccine for monkeypox virus. The main treatment methods are symptomatic support treatment, prevention and treatment of complications, rest, supplement of water and nutrition, isolation of patients, prevention and treatment of skin lesions and secondary infection. Monkeypox is a self-limiting disease, and most patients can recover themselves within 2 ~ 6 weeks.

First, general treatment.

Strengthen nursing and keep eyes, nose, mouth and skin clean.

Secondly, medication.

1. Antipyretic drugs: If the patient has persistent high fever and cannot reduce the fever, consider using antipyretic drugs, such as indomethacin.

2, antibiotics: to prevent secondary infections, such as cidofovir.

3. Iodophor: In the case of skin injury, iodophor can be used to avoid infection at the injured site.

Third, surgical treatment.

At present, there is no surgical treatment for monkeypox, and symptomatic treatment is the main clinical treatment.

Fourth, other treatments.

Physical cooling: When the patient has a fever, consider using ice packs and ice stickers to cool down.

How to prevent monkeypox virus

1. People should avoid contact with sick animals that may carry monkeypox virus, avoid eating or handling wild animals or game, and pay attention to hand hygiene and personal prevention.

2. Avoid contact with animals that may carry the virus. In addition, after contact with infected people or animals, you should wash your hands with soapy water or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer. It is also recommended to wear protective equipment when taking care of patients.

3. Finding cases as early as possible, isolating and tracking suspicious cases and raising people's awareness of this disease are the keys to prevent secondary infection and effectively control the epidemic.

4. Infected animals should be isolated from other animals and isolated immediately. Animals that may have had contact with infected animals should be isolated for 30 days and observe the symptoms of monkeypox.