2023-07-10 10:29:32
The number of Mpox cases – formerly monkeypox – has decreased, but there are still new cases. PD dr Martin Hartmann explains what doctors should pay attention to.
Transcript of the video by PD Dr. Martin Hartmann, Heidelberg
Beautiful good day,
here is Martin Hartmann from the Department of Dermatology at the University of Heidelberg.
Smallpox coming back? It’s regarding the Mpox. Last year they were called Monkeypox, then the WHO renamed them so as not to discriminate once morest the animals. We would have to rename monkey pox to Apox.
Last year there was a Mpox wave among MSM, among homosexual patients with and without HIV infection. Some of them used PrEP, i.e. pre-exposure prophylaxis. In the course of 2022, there were frequent cases of this disease in the priority facilities.
Due to the smallpox vaccination and because those affected took a break and stayed at home, fewer and fewer infections were passed on and the rate of Mpox infections in Germany almost came to a standstill.
There are only a few cases in Berlin that have been reported. There are also only a few cases in Europe. The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the European health agency, has also stopped sending out regular reports, and as such the question arises as to whether monkeypox is finally over.
New data continue to support Mpox occurrences
There is now new data from Chicago, where 13 new cases of Mpox were documented in April/May [1]. 51 new cases were seen in New York earlier this year. There are also new cases in Europe in the UK and Spain. In the UK there are more than 10 cases, and infections also occur in vaccinated – and even in double vaccinated – people, so it can be assumed that the vaccination is not as effective or does not provide protection. The WHO has also documented recent cases [2].
In Germany, 71,000 vaccinations have already been carried out and the effectiveness of a single vaccination is regarding 36% and of a double vaccination regarding 66%, according to a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine [3]. (Anm. d. Red.: Die WHO has registered 521 cases in Germany by the end of June since the outbreaks began in 2022. The last case in this country was in January 2023 documented .)
Photo: M. Hartmann
Is there a new epidemic?
So are we at the beginning of a new Mpox epidemic? It ultimately remains unclear. But we also keep getting referrals with suspected Mpox. The last referral turned out to be a staphylogenic infection. Patients are still predominantly MSM, but new data from Nigeria shows that heterosexual transmission is not uncommon [4].
If patients present with varicelliform images, i.e. blisters resembling chickenpox, either as a rash, i.e. a rash, or with genital – less commonly oral – lesions and fever, then you should remember that this may be one of the new Mpox cases in Germany is.
So you must remain vigilant. Unvaccinated individuals must be strongly recommended to be vaccinated.
That was from Heidelberg, thanks for listening.
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#Stay #alert #Mpox
