Country’s second monkeypox case confirmed in Durban
A Durban man has tested positive for monkeypox, the country's second laboratory-confirmed case in just a few weeks, and has been admitted to Addington Hospital.
THE country’s second laboratory-confirmed mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) case has been recorded after a Durban man recently tested positive for the virus.
“The new patient is a 39-year-old male who was admitted at Addington Hospital in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, without a travel history to countries and regions currently experiencing the disease outbreak,” said the National Department of Health in a recent statement.
The first case was logged in Gauteng when a 35-year-old man tested positive on May 9.
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According to the National Department of Health, the infectious disease is caused by the mpox virus and has the potential to cause painful or itchy rash-like pimples or blisters and fever.
The department said that after working closely with the province and the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), they have activated contact tracing and case finding to identify and assess people in contact with the patient to prevent further transmission, especially at a household and community level.
“This will also assist to establish if the second case was in contact with the first case confirmed in Gauteng earlier this month,” said the department.
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According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a total of 466 laboratory-confirmed cases of mpox and three deaths from 22 countries were reported globally in March 2024.
The department says this illustrates that low-level transmission continues worldwide.
The department said stigma and discrimination may prolong a disease outbreak by stopping people from coming forward for information or seeking testing or care, which undermines public health efforts.
“We urge the public and communities to support those who test positive for mpox to take treatment and those with suspected symptoms to go for screening and testing instead of discriminating against them,” said the department.
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