MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina confirms sixth case of monkeypox nationwide

The Argentine government has advised people to up all prevention measures while announcing tougher border controls

A new case of monkeypox was confirmed Friday in the Argentine province of Corrientes, bringing the total number of cases in the country to six in the same week that the World Health Organization declared the malady a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) after an outbreak in Africa.

The new infection was included in Friday's issue of the federal Health Ministry's National Epidemiological Bulletin (BEN) which collected data from Corrientes' Public Health Minister Ricardo Cardozo, who also explained that the local patient “has already been discharged and is progressing well.”

Argentina's first case was confirmed in the province of Buenos Aires, followed by two others in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA), one in Santa Fe, and one in Río Negro. With the one in Corrientes, a total of six cases have been confirmed out of 39 reported. The infected patients were aged between 23 and 38 years, it was also explained.

According to Corrientes' Epidemiology Department, the new appearance was not the new variant, but rather a case of the simian smallpox type that has been appearing from time to time since 2022. “The new variant is still in Africa,” the authorities stressed. In 2024, 548 deaths and 15,664 potential cases of the disease were reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo.Monkeypox is a disease caused by the monkeypox virus. Currently, two different clades, I and II, have been identified.

The main symptoms include vesicular rashes in various areas of the body such as the genitals, perianal region, hands, and torso. Fever and myalgias may also be experienced. So far, there have been no deaths from monkeypox in the country.

However, national health authorities have announced reinforced prevention measures, as well as tighter border controls pursuant to international regulations. The government also encouraged people who have had contact with an affected person to go to a health center and avoid contact with other people until symptoms are alleviated. It has been proven that the way to catch the virus clade I MPXV is through person-to-person transmission, after being in contact with people with typical monkeypox lesions, or the clothing of an infected person.