The health department has recorded South Africa’s 25th laboratory-confirmed case of mpox, with the latest patient a 38-year-old man in Cape Town.
He sought medical intervention at a private medical practice on September 4 after experiencing typical mpox lesions on the face, trunk, thorax and genitals and headache, light sensitivity, sore throat and muscle pain. He was told to home-isolate while waiting for test results. The results came back positive on Friday.
He is in a stable condition, the department said.
The patient has no recent international travel history nor contact with a suspected or confirmed mpox case.
Since the outbreak in May, 12 cases were reported in Gauteng, 11 in KwaZulu-Natal and now two in the Western Cape. There have been three fatalities.
The health department said the outbreak response team in the province has been activated, with contact tracing and monitoring activities ongoing.
“We urge the identified and suspected contacts to co-operate with health officials during contact tracing for screening and possible diagnosis to prevent further transmission of this preventable and treatable disease.
“The healthcare workers understand the importance of confidentiality in managing reported and suspected cases of notifiable medical conditions. The risk of wider transmission remains low in the country but anyone can contract mpox regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation and race.”
Some of the common symptoms of mpox include a rash which may last for two to four weeks, fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen glands (lymph nodes). The painful rash looks like blisters or sores.
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