The Israeli Health Ministry reported today (computer translated) on a imported monkeypox case in an Israeli who lives and works in the Port Harcourt area of southern Nigeria.

Monkeypox Image/CDC
Monkeypox Image/CDC

The man got sick about a week after his return and was diagnosed today according to a report from Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Hospital.

This follows two imported monkeypox cases in England, also from travelers from Nigeria.

Monkeypox is a zoonotic disease indigenous to Central Africa. In humans, the disease is similar to smallpox, though milder.

According to the CDC, the symptoms of monkeypox are as follows: About 12 days after people are infected with the virus, they will get a fever, headache, muscle aches, and backache; their lymph nodes will swell; and they will feel tired. One to 3 days (or longer) after the fever starts, they will get a rash. This rash develops into raised bumps filled with fluid and often starts on the face and spreads, but it can start on other parts of the body too. The bumps go through several stages before they get crusty, scab over, and fall off. The illness usually lasts for 2 to 4 weeks.

Nigeria monkeypox: ‘Index case appears not to be imported’

Rodents, such as rope squirrels, door mice and pouched rats, are the suspected reservoir hosts, with monkeys and humans as secondary, spill-over hosts.

People at risk for monkeypox are those who get bitten by an infected animal or if you have contact with the animal’s rash, blood or body fluids. It can also be transmitted person to person through respiratory or direct contact and contact with contaminated bedding or clothing.

There is no specific treatment for monkeypox.