A 37-year-old man has become South Africa’s first recorded death from monkey pox after five laboratory-confirmed cases of the viral infection were recorded in the past month. The health minister confirmed the news on Wednesday adding that four others remain on treatment.
The man died in Tembisa Hospital on Monday, Health Minister Joe Phaahla told a news conference. “All cases/patients are males aged between 30-39 years without travel history to the countries currently experiencing an outbreak, which suggests there is local transmission of this infectious disease in the country,” the minister said.
Monkey pox spreads through close contact, causing flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions. Most cases are mild but it can kill. All of South Africa’s monkey pox cases are in men aged between 30 and 39 years old without travel history to countries currently experiencing an outbreak, which suggests local transmission of the infectious disease, according to Phaahla.
The minister added that one patient has been discharged, one discharged for home isolation and two remain in hospital. Although, the WHO has not recommended any travel restrictions, it is important for travellers to and from endemic countries to alert health officials on the situation to enable them to provide guidance for case detection and management.
