The first case of monkeypox infection has been confirmed in Berlin. The virus was found in a man in his mid-50s. In another case, the positive test result of a 30-year-old is expected on Saturday. The Berlin doctor Heiko Jessen, who runs an infectiology practice in Schöneberg and treats the two patients, told the Tagesspiegel on Saturday.
A third case is said to have been found in a Berlin clinic. The RBB reports three officially identified cases, but there was initially no official confirmation.
Jessen assumes that the number of monkeypox infections will increase significantly in the coming week. Both patients took part in “club parties with sex from exposed groups”.
Unlike the case previously registered in Munich, the 55-year-old is said to have not left Berlin for a long time. It was probably infected at a sex party in Berlin. The man had had a smallpox vaccination, two smallpox were found during the examination, and the disease had receded noticeably. After a PCR test, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) confirmed the infection on Friday.
The 30-year-old took part in a sex party in Spain, a confirmation from the RKI was still pending on Saturday. The symptoms were significantly more severe in this patient who had not been vaccinated against smallpox. Both are in outpatient isolation.
The first case from Munich had previously become known on Friday. There the virus was found in a 26-year-old Brazilian who had recently traveled from Portugal to Munich via Spain.
After detecting the first case of monkeypox in Germany, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) assumes that the outbreak can be contained. “It was only a matter of time before monkeypox was also detected in Germany,” said Lauterbach on Friday in Berlin. He does not assume that there are many unreported cases in Germany.
Doctors assume that a double smallpox vaccination, which older people received in childhood, protects against monkeypox. Jessen said that new vaccine should be obtained. An antiviral drug could also be available soon. A problem with monkeypox could be that internal organs could also be affected.
According to the RKI, transmission of the disease is “possible through close contact, but can occur through contact with bodily fluids or scabs from monkeypox infected people,” including through sexual activity. The WHO warns of the spread of monkeypox in Europe. The virus could spread especially at mass events in the summer months.
Monkeypox infection is considered a serious illness. In most of those affected, it goes away on its own and leaves no lasting damage. Symptoms are similar to smallpox – there is a rash on the face, palms or soles, scabs, fever, muscle aches and chills. According to the RKI, severe courses are also possible, and a higher mortality rate can be observed, especially in children.
