Vigilance on characteristic symptoms

In response to the spread of monkeypox in Africa, new guidelines have been issued for monitoring the disease. Primary health centers (CSBs) are now tasked with overseeing this initiative.

Doctors at primary health centers are required to invest more time in examining patients for signs of monkeypox. According to CSB sources, skin symptoms are particularly noted in individuals who have recently traveled from affected regions.

The key symptoms of monkeypox include fever, headaches, muscle aches, skin rashes, and swollen lymph nodes. Monitoring these symptoms is crucial to limiting the spread of this viral zoonosis. The World Health Organization (WHO) notes that, unlike the COVID-19 virus, the Mpox virus does not spread before symptoms appear. As of now, « no cases have been detected ». However, doctors and CSB medical staff emphasize the importance of reporting any cases should they arise.

Madagascar, like other countries, is preparing for the potential arrival of monkeypox. The government has not implemented border closures for travelers from countries with high prevalence, such as Congo. Mpox is transmitted through sexual contact, contact with clothing or towels used by an infected person, direct contact with lesions or scabs on the skin of an infected person, and through coughing or sneezing by an infected person.