A dozen suspected cases of monkeypox in Canada

Health authorities in the Canadian metropolis of Montreal are examining more than a dozen suspected cases of monkeypox, public broadcaster Radio-Canada reported on Wednesday. The United States has confirmed a case from Canada.

This uncommon disease usually manifests with fever, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes, and rashes on the hands and face, like chickenpox.

‘Montreal public health confirms that several cases of monkey pox are being studied in the metropolis,’ says Radio-Canada. ‘At least 13 cases’ are being examined in the French-speaking town.

Doctors reported the suspected cases following diagnoses made by three clinics specializing in sexually transmitted infections, according to the same source.

On the other side of the border, the health authorities of the American state of Massachusetts have confirmed a case of this disease, the first of the year in the United States, detected in an adult who recently traveled to Canada.

Health alert

“The case poses no risk to the public and the person is hospitalized and well,” said authorities in Massachusetts, who are working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the country’s main federal health agency. country.

The CDC says it is monitoring cases of this disease recently detected in Europe. ‘Anyone, regardless of sexual orientation, can spread monkeypox’.

Several of these European cases have thus been detected within the homosexual community. Since May 6, seven cases of monkeypox have been identified in the UK, including four in people identifying as ‘gay, bisexual or men who have sex with men’, according to the agency British Health Safety.

Spain and Portugal also announced earlier on Wednesday that they had more than 40 suspected or confirmed cases of monkeypox.

According to the Spanish and Portuguese authorities, which have triggered a national health alert, this rare disease is not very contagious between humans, has no treatment and is generally cured on its own.

/ATS