Another 21 cases of monkeypox bring total to 297

The number of people in Portugal infected with the virus ‘Monkeypox’ rose to 297, according to data released on Monday by the health authority (DGS), with 21 more cases recorded, most in the Lisbon and Tagus Valley region.

According to information from the DGS, 21 more cases of human infection with the ‘Monkeypox’ virus have been confirmed, bringing the number of recorded cases to 297, and “all confirmed infections are in men between 19 and 61 years old, with the majority under 40 years old”.

“The new cases were confirmed by the National Health Institute Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA),” the DGS added, noting that there are also cases registered in the North and Algarve regions.

It also stated that the identified cases are under clinical follow-up and are stable and that the “information collected through epidemiological surveys is being analysed to contribute to the assessment of the outbreak at national and international level”.

“The DGS continues to monitor the situation at the national level in articulation with European institutions,” it further says.

According to health authorities, the clinical manifestation of ‘Monkeypox’ is generally mild, with most infected people recovering from the disease within a few weeks.

Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and back pain, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion, and developing into a rash.

The incubation period is typically six to 16 days but can be as long as 21 days, and when the rash crusts over, the infected person is no longer infectious.

Portugal will receive 2,700 doses of the ‘Monkeypox’ virus vaccines purchased by the European Commission, the DGS recently confirmed, and is drawing up a technical standard that will define how they will be used.