MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

11 new cases of monkeypox reported in Argentina

All mpox infections nationwide belonged to variant clade II

Argentine health authorities Monday reported the detection of 11 new cases of monkeypox in patients aged 34 on average with a minimum age of 20 years and a maximum of 56.

 Seven of these cases were in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA) and the four others were in the province of Buenos Aires. So far in 2024, 65 infections -64 men and one woman- have been confirmed, all of them belonging to variant clade II.

In 98% of the cases, the following symptoms were observed: Skin rashes on genitals, perianal, face, hands, and torso; fever; muscle aches and pains

The most affected populations are men who have sex with men, with sexual contact with new or multiple partners being the main risk factor. Of the 39 cases with HIV, 26 have HIV co-infection, while 98% of the infections showed rashes in different locations (including genital, perianal, hands, face, and torso), followed by fever and myalgias. Four patients required hospitalization, although none were admitted to intensive care.

A total of 12 of these 65 patients had a recent travel history. So far, no deaths have been reported. The National Health Ministry's Epidemiological Bulletin also noted that there were 357 suspected cases reported.