Seventeen cases of monkeypox confirmed in Belgium

Seventeen confirmed infections with the monkeypox virus have been identified in Belgium, national health institute Sciensano reported on Friday. There are eleven cases in Flanders, five cases in Brussels and one case in Wallonia.

So far, only young men who have sexual contacts with men have been infected. Nevertheless, the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasises that monkeypox is caused by a virus that does not differentiate between people and is not restricted to the gay community.

WHO emphasises that monkeypox does not differentiate between people and is not restricted to the gay community.

So far, no people with the monkeypox virus have had to be hospitalised.

Monkeypox is related to smallpox, which claimed millions of victims worldwide each year before it was eradicated in 1980. However, monkeypox is much less severe and most people recover within three to four weeks. The virus is transmitted through close contacts. The first symptoms are high fever, swollen lymph nodes and a chickenpox-like rash.

(BRV)

© PHOTO Cynthia S. Goldsmith / Centers for Disease Control and Prevention / AFP