Phaahla confirms first monkeypox case in South Africa
The National Institute of Communicable Diseases has confirmed that the first case of monkeypox has been identified in South Africa.
The institute says the case involves a 30-year-old man residing in Gauteng and was picked up through lab testing on Wednesday.
Officials say the man has no recent travel history.
Speaking through a post-cabinet media briefing on Thursday, Health Minister Joe Phaahla confirmed that he was told about the case yesterday.
"Working with the relevant health authorities, a process of contact tracing has begun.
"Monkeypox is usually a mild disease manifesting as blisters on the skin. It is usually mild and self-limiting with a fatality rate of 1%. The disease has previously been reported in African countries such as Nigeria, DRC, CA Republic and Ghana in the early 2000s.
"The current outbreak is dominated by high numbers in Europe e.g UK, Spain, Germany, Portugal and France. Cases have also been reported in the USA and Canada."
A case of #monkeypox has been identified in South Africa. The case involves a 30-year-old male residing in the Gauteng province. Monkeypox is rarely fatal. Severe cases may occur in children, pregnant woman and in individuals that are immunocompromised https://t.co/dJ2j2aBGe1 pic.twitter.com/G9XPk0RBgI
— NICD (@nicd_sa) June 23, 2022
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