The current monkeypox has different symptoms than previous outbreaks

The current outbreak of monkey pox It presents important differences in symptoms compared to the previous ones registered in endemic regions, among them rectal pain or edema of the penis, according to a study among British patients published by The British Medical Journal.

The findings are based on 197 confirmed cases of monkeypox at a London infectious disease center between May and July 2022, and the researchers believe these results should help doctors detect infections earlier.

The study points out that some of the common symptoms described by those affected, such as rectal pain, swelling of the penis (edema) or tonsils, differ from those described in previous outbreaks.

The participants in this study were men with a mean age of 38, of whom 196 said they have sex with men.

All patients had skin or mucous membrane lesions, most often on the genitalia or perianal area.

The majority (86%) of patients reported a systemic (involving the whole body) illness, and the most common systemic symptoms were fever (62%), swollen lymph nodes (58%), and muscle aches (32%). ).

The researchers noted that, in contrast to existing case reports suggesting that systemic symptoms precede skin lesions, 38% of patients developed them after the onset of mucocutaneous lesions.

Of the patients examined, 71 reported rectal pain, 33 sore throat, and 31 penile edema, while 27 had oral lesions, 22 a solitary lesion, and nine swollen tonsils.

The authors note that solitary lesions and swollen tonsils were not previously known to be typical features of monkeypox infection and could be confused with other conditions.

Only one of the study participants had recently traveled to a region where the disease is endemic, confirming ongoing transmission within the UK.

Furthermore, only a quarter of the patients had known contact with someone with a confirmed monkeypox infection, raising the possibility of transmission by people with few or no symptoms.

The authors acknowledge some limitations, such as the observational nature of the findings, the possible variability of clinical registries, and the fact that the data is limited to a single center, according to The British Medical Journal.

So far, 70% of the cases of this outbreak are concentrated in Europe.

Spain is where the most cases have been reported in the world (3,595), followed by the United States (2,881), Germany (2,410), the United Kingdom (2,208) and France (1,567).