Sat 21 May 2022:
The Iberian Peninsula is home to Europe’s two largest confirmed monkeypox outbreaks, with Spain reporting 30 cases and Portugal reporting 23 as of Friday.
The largest outbreak is presently in Madrid, with 30 cases confirmed by PCR and another 15 under investigation.
According to Madrid’s health minister, Enrique Ruiz Escudero, contact tracers discovered that a sauna was the epicenter of monkeypox transmission. Sauna is a term used in Spain to designate a gay bathhouse.
All of the instances in Spain have so far been found in men. None of them have been admitted to a hospital.
Madrid health authorities will investigate the sauna to learn more about how the virus may have been spread, Escudero added.
Leading Spanish daily El Pais on Friday also quoted hospital sources who say more and more people are coming forward with compatible symptoms.
Within Spain, Andalusia and the Canary Islands are investigating a total of three cases.
On Friday, Portugal also confirmed another nine infections, bringing the total confirmed cases in the nation to 23, with more under investigation.
Portuguese health authorities call for people “presenting ulcerative lesions, rashes, palpable ganglia, possibly accompanied by fever, chills, headaches, muscle aches and tiredness” to seek medical attention, to avoid “direct physical contact with others” and sharing “clothing, towels, sheets and personal effects while symptoms or skin lesions are present at any stage.”
The monkeypox virus was first detected spreading outside of Africa in the UK earlier this month. In total, Britain has confirmed 20 infections.
The virus is continuing to spread internationally, with several other countries like Italy, Sweden, the US, and Canada confirming their first cases in recent days.
Monkeypox usually starts with fever, headache, muscle and backaches, swollen lymph nodes, chills, fatigue, and eventually a rash and painful, fluid-filled blisters on the face, hands, and feet.
The rash usually appears first on the face, then the hands and feet and develops within one to three days.
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