The first case of Monkeypox was diagnosed in the UK, and it had the possibility of exposing 50 other members of the public to the rare viral infection. The health officials feared the exposure of the infection's virus soon after the first case was diagnosed.

On Friday the case Monkeypox was confirmed in a Nigerian naval officer who came to the UK to take part in a Ministry of Defence (MoD) training exercise at a Royal Navy base in Cornwall. The officer is said to have contracted the infection in Nigeria itself before boarding a flight to London.

However, there were still chances that he could have infected the others on the flight that he travelled in. Therefore Public Health England contacted the other passengers on the plane and warned them that they were exposed to the infection. Also, they should get themselves checked.

What is Monkeypox?

This rare infection is caused by the monkeypox virus and can infect humans with smallpox-like symptoms. A study best describes the infection as 'Monkeypox is a rare disease that is caused by infection with monkeypox virus. Monkeypox virus belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus in the family Poxviridae. The Orthopoxvirus genus also includes variola virus (the cause of smallpox), vaccinia virus (used in the smallpox vaccine), and cowpox virus. Monkeypox was first discovered in 1958 when two outbreaks of a pox-like disease occurred in colonies of monkeys kept for research, hence the name ‘monkeypox.' The first human case of monkeypox was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo during a period of an intensified effort to eliminate smallpox. Since then monkeypox has been reported in humans in other central and western African countries. The 2003 outbreak in the United States is the only time monkeypox infections in humans were documented outside of Africa.'

What are the symptoms of Monkeypox?

Studies have found that the symptoms of monkeypox are quite similar to that of smallpox but are milder in comparison. In the initial stages of Monkeypox, you'll see symptoms like fever, muscle aches, exhaustion, etc.

Here are a few proven symptoms:

  • Fever

  • Muscle aches

  • A headache

  • A backache

  • Swollen lymph nodes

  • Exhaustion

  • Chills

  • Rashes beginning on the may appear within 1-3 days (in few cases the duration may stretch longer)

Monkeypox may last till about four weeks depending on the severity of the disease. A study says, 'In Africa, monkeypox has been shown to cause death in as many as 1 in 10 persons who contract the disease.' And further goes on to say that, 'The main difference between symptoms of smallpox and monkeypox is that monkeypox causes lymph nodes to swell (lymphadenopathy) while smallpox does not.'

(References: Monkeypox, PubMed Health/ Monkeypox virus and insights into its immunomodulatory proteins/ Monkeypox virus C T Cho and H A Wenner)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 09, 2018 01:58 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).