One person infected with monkeypox has died in the United States. Authorities are now investigating what role the virus played in the death.
Washington, DC – More than 18,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in the United States to date. The first death has now been registered in connection with the virus. The health authorities of the state of Texas confirmed this on Tuesday (August 30). The adult, whose gender was not specified, had previously been severely immunocompromised.
According to the authorities, they now want to investigate “what role monkeypox played in the death”. It must be checked whether the virus played a role in the death or not, said Jennifer McQuiston from the US health authority CDC.
Monkeypox in the US: deaths possible, ‘but very rare’
“It’s important to emphasize that deaths from monkeypox, while possible, are very rare,” McQuiston said. In the current global wave of infections of more than 40,000 cases, there have only been a “handful” of deaths so far. The first deaths in Europe occurred at the end of July. In Spain, two people died after a monkeypox infection, the WDR reported, among others.
According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), cases of monkeypox were first reported in Germany in May. There are now 3455 cases in all 16 federal states (as of August 30, 2022). The numbers have been declining slightly since the beginning of August. The vast majority of those infected with monkeypox are men, so far only 13 cases have been reported in women. An infection in a child has not yet been proven.
Monkeypox: These are typical symptoms
According to the RKI, monkeypox is a viral disease presumably transmitted from rodents to humans. According to current knowledge, transmission from person to person is also possible. The disease initially appeared mainly in some West and Central African countries.
Monkeypox is usually milder than smallpox, which was eradicated about 40 years ago. According to the RKI, these are typical symptoms:
- Fever
- Head, muscle and back pain
- Swollen lymph nodes
- chills
- exhaustion
- Sometimes painful skin changes with a rash (chickenpox-like pustules)
(cash/AFP)
