Monkeypox patients could be infectious for up to FOUR WEEKS after symptoms appear, experts say

Monkeypox patients could pass on the disease for up to four weeks after symptoms appear, experts tell DailyMail.com as the virus spreads to eleven nations. 

Dr Amesh Adalja, an emerging infectious diseases experts at John Hopkins University, made the warning in an interview today.

People who catch the virus initially suffer a fever before rashes and skin lesions appear on the face and body. The virus can then be passed on through touching the affected areas or via droplets expelled in coughs and sneezes.

America is bracing for more monkeypox cases to be detected in the coming days, but experts are not expecting cases on a par with the Covid pandemic. 

Health chiefs confirmed their first case this year in a man from Massachusetts on Wednesday, while another patient has been hospitalized with a suspected case in New York City — and six people are being monitored after sitting within three rows of an infected individual on a flight.

Most cases being detected are not linked to travel in west Africa — where the virus is endemic — suggesting it is spreading in western nations. 

Canada yesterday joined the growing list of countries detecting their first ever cases, saying two individuals in Quebec were infected. It is probing another 17.

Many cases have been detected in gay and bisexual men, with scientists saying it is possible the virus was passed on sexually.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a smallpox drug to treat monkeypox patients Friday, while the World Health Organization revealed it was holding an emergency meeting over the outbreak.

Eleven countries — including the US, Spain and Italy — have now detected monkeypox, in the first global outbreak of its kind. More cases are expected in the coming days

Eleven more Britons have been diagnosed with monkeypox and all but one of them appear to have contracted it in the UK. The original UK patient had brought the virus back from Nigeria, where the disease is widespread

Dr Amesh Adalja (left), an infectious disease expert at Johns Hopkins, warned people who catch the virus could pass it on for up to four weeks after symptoms appear. Dr Michael Head, from Southampton University in England, warned people could spread the virus as long as they had symptoms

Adalja told DailyMail.com that monkeypox patients could be infectious for up to four weeks.

He added: ‘[This is because] it can take a few weeks for the skin lesions to disappear.

‘People are contagious until their active skin lesions have dissipated.’

Dr Michael Head, a global health expert at Southampton University in England, agreed with his assertion.

He said: ‘Based on previous monkeypox outbreaks and guidance from [UK health authorities] and WHO, the infectious period (i.e. when the virus can be transmitted to another person) can be comparable to the time period where the rash and blisters are present. 

‘This may be for two weeks, and may be longer. 

‘Specifically here in this outbreak, we’re learning more about the cases and their presentations, and so many basic questions about their epidemiology are still to be clarified.

‘However, if onward transmission can indeed take place over a longer period of time, early identification of any possible cases is going to be vital in efforts to break those chains of transmission and contain the outbreak.’

Dr Adalja warned yesterday that America will detect more cases in other states besides Massachusetts in the coming days.

It came just hours before New York City health officials revealed they were probing a suspected case.

The patient — who has not been named — was hospitalized at Bellevue Hospital, lower-Manhattan.

They are currently in isolation, and tests are being carried out to confirm the infection.

On Wednesday America confirmed its first case of the virus this year in Massachusetts.

The man — who has also not been named — had travelled from Canada to the U.S. by car, officials said.

He had been hospitalized but is understood to be in a ‘good condition’.

Health chiefs are also monitoring six people who sat near a case on a flight from Nigeria to the UK on May 4, although the risk they caught the virus is ‘low’.

Canada yesterday declared it had detected two cases of the virus, and was monitoring another 17, with many linked to the American patient.

The individuals are men between 30 and 50 years old, who have sex with other men.

The patients are mostly in Montreal, with many not suffering severe symptoms.

The first was picked up at a sexual health clinic on May 12, Canadian health authorities said.

The UK, Belgium, France, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Germany and Australia have also confirmed cases of the virus.

Experts say the current count could be just the ‘tip of the iceberg’ because of travel between the nations.

Monkeypox is normally spread through contact with wild animals in west Africa, typically squirrels.

But it can also be passed on between humans through physical contact with skin lesions and the air.

Initial symptoms appear up to 21 days after infection and include a fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, chills and exhaustion.

A rash can develop, often beginning on the face, then spreading to other parts of the body including the genitals. It goes through several different stages — making it look like chickenpox or syphilis — before finally forming a scab and falling off.

Monkeypox is spread via physical touch, experts say, which would explain why it seems to have spread in the sexual network of gay and bisexual men in parts of Europe

People who are infected with monkeypox often suffer from severe rashes, skin lesions and flu like symptoms. The virus kills around one-in-ten people it infects, though there is belief that the current strain making its way around the world has a mortality rate of one percent

About one in ten cases of the virus are fatal, according to estimates. But scientists say the strain currently in circulation is less deadly, with about one in 100 patients dying from the virus — similar to when Covid first took off.

There is no specific treatment for monkeypox, but today the FDA approved the smallpox drug TPOXX for patients with the virus.

It is typically kept in reserve for smallpox cases, but because of the similarity between the viruses it can also be deployed against this virus.

Health chiefs also have access to a vaccine, called Jynneos, for people to help protect them against the virus.

The U.S. yesterday ordered another 13million doses — for a total of $119million — to replenish its stockpile.

The jab was developed by Danish company Bavarian Nordic, with studies showing it is up to 85 percent effective against both smallpox and monkeypox.

It comes as the WHO confirms it is meeting today to discuss the growing outbreak in western nations.

Dr Meaghan Kall said the meeting confirms the agency is ‘taking the situation seriously’. 

Spain today reported another 14 cases, bringing the nation’s total to 21. And Belgium detected two cases, one in Antwerp and the other in Flemish Brabant.

Germany subsequently confirmed its first ever monkeypox case in a patient who had ‘characteristic skin lesions’ — a tell-tale sign of the illness.

Meanwhile, France last night confirmed a 29-year-old man in Paris had contracted the virus. He had not recently travelled, suggesting the virus is spreading in the community.

And Australia last night confirmed two cases, including one man in his thirties who had travelled from Britain to Melbourne with symptoms earlier this week.

Elsewhere, Portuguese researchers today published a draft genome sequence of the virus.

The data, obtained from a male patient whose infection was confirmed on May 4 after he spotted skin lesions, will help scientists determine the origin and international spread of the currently circulating virus.

EVERYTHING you need to know about monkeypox: Strain ‘transmits through sex’ and is about as deadly as the Wuhan Covid variant — but a vaccine does exist

Monkeypox appears to be spreading globally for the first time in an outbreak that has caught health officials off-guard.

The U.S. has recorded one case so far, but is probing seven others including one in a patient hospitalized in New York City.

In the UK, where at least 20 cases have been detected so far, the majority of patients in the UK are gay or bisexual men, as are the eight Spanish men suspected of having the disease.

Portuguese officials have confirmed five men tested positive and over a dozen more are thought to be infected.

Health chiefs in the UK say the pattern of transmission is ‘highly suggestive of spread in sexual networks’.

Until now monkeypox had only been detected in four countries outside of Africa — the UK, US, Israel and Singapore, all of whom had links to Nigeria and Ghana.

Infections are more common in central and western Africa, where they can result from direct contact with infected animals.

Monkeypox can kill up to one in 10 people it infects — but the strain spreading globally is milder and has a fatality rate of about one in 100.

That is roughly the same as the first strain of Covid that came out of Wuhan, however vaccines and natural immunity have since made the coronavirus much weaker.

Monkeypox’s similarity to smallpox means jabs and drugs against that virus are also effective.

Here is everything we know about the UK monkeypox outbreak so far:

Monkeypox is a rare viral infection which kills up to one in ten of those infected but does not spread easily between people. The tropical disease is endemic in parts of Africa and is known for its rare and unusual rashes, bumps and lesions (file photo)

What is monkeypox?

Monkeypox is a rare viral infection which people usually pick up in the tropical areas of west and central Africa.

It is usually spread through direct contact with animals such as squirrels, which are known to harbour the virus.

However, it can also be transmitted through very close contact with an infected person. 

Monkeypox was first discovered when an outbreak of a pox-like disease occurred in monkeys kept for research in 1958.

The first human case was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the infection has been reported in a number of central and western African countries since then.

Only a handful of cases have been reported outside of Africa and they were confined to people with travel links to the continent.

How deadly is it?

Monkeypox is usually mild, with most patients recovering within a few weeks without treatment. Yet, the disease can prove fatal.

Monkeypox kills up to 10 per cent of people it infects.

However, with milder strains the fatality rate is closer to one in 100 — similar to when Covid first hit.

The UK cases all had the West African strain of the virus, which is mild compared to the Central African strain. 

It is thought that cases in Portugal and Spain also have the milder version, though tests are underway.

Is there a cure? 

Because monkeypox is closely related to the virus that causes smallpox, jabs for smallpox can also protect people from getting monkeypox.

One vaccine, Jynneos, also known as Imvamune or Imvanex, has been licensed in the U.S., but it’s not approved in the UK.

The vaccine was shown to be around 85 percent effective in preventing monkeypox infection.

Antivirals and pooled blood from individuals vaccinated against smallpox can be used to treat severe cases.

What is the situation with the current UK outbreak?

Seven cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in the UK between May 6 and 15. 

Six of the infected Brits had not recently travelled abroad, suggesting there is transmission between people in the UK for the first time.

Some of the cases are believed to have caught the virus through sex — which health experts have described as ‘bizarre’.

Monkeypox was not thought to spread via sexual intercourse but through close contact with lesions or respiratory droplets. However, just because it can spread during sex does not mean it is the virus’ primary route of transmission, nor does it make it an STI.

British medical chiefs are tracking down contacts of those infected to identify additional cases, as it is not clear how all of the infected people caught Monkeypox.

Health leaders are also working with international agencies to determine if similar outbreaks are occurring elsewhere.  

What do we know about the U.S. cases?

One case has been confirmed in the U.S. in a man who travelled from Canada to Massachusetts by car.

The individual — who has not been named — is now in hospital and said to be in a ‘good condition’.

Officials are probing a case in New York City to determine whether a man has the virus. Another six people who shared a flight with a British monkeypox case are also being monitored. 

Dr Jennifer McQuiston, a senior CDC official, warned that Britain’s current spate of cases could be the tip of the iceberg.

The lack of travel links and connections between the UK cases suggest there are ‘unknown chains of transmission happening’, she said.

‘You have two clusters that have no link to travel or to other people who are known to be associated with a recognised outbreak.

‘It suggests that there are unknown chains of transmission happening. If there appears to be unknown chains of transmission, it just puts on alert to be thinking: “Could this be spreading outside the UK?”‘

How worrying is it?

Health chiefs say the risk of a major outbreak is low. 

But they have urged gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men to be extra vigilant because they appear to be at higher risk of catching it. 

These groups have been urged to look out for any unusual rashes or lesions on any part of their body, especially their genitalia, and to contact a sexual health service without delay if they have concerns.

Most scientists believe the outbreak will be small and transmission nothing like the levels seen with Covid.

This is because monkeypox is poor at spreading between humans and relies on very close and prolonged contact between people.

How does it spread?

Monkeypox is not a sexually transmitted infection by nature, though it can be passed on by direct contact during sex. 

Contagious lesions, through which infections are most likely to be passed on, can appear on any part of the body. 

The infection can also be passed on through contact with clothing or linens used by an infected person.  

Until now, monkeypox had only ever been detected in four countries outside of Africa – the UK, U.S., Israel and Singapore.

And all of those cases had travel links to Nigeria and Ghana. 

What are the symptoms?

Initial symptoms of monkeypox include fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion.

But its most unusual feature is a rash that often begins on the face, then spreads to other parts of the body, commonly the hands and feet.

The rash changes and goes through different stages before finally forming a scab, which later falls off.

What do I do if I have symptoms? 

Anyone worried that they could be infected with monkeypox is advised to make contact with clinics ahead of their visit. 

Health chiefs say their call or discussion will be treated sensitively and confidentially.