Since the announcement of the first case of monkey pox (May 7), the disease has already been detected in over 200 people in 19 countries around the world. The virus is increasing its incidence, although it is not a new pathogen, and many people have already had contact with it. One of them is Dr. Kurt Zaeske, a veterinarian in Wisconsin, USA, who fell ill with monkey pox in 2003. “I was terrified,” she recalls.
- Dr. Kurt Zaeske contracted the monkey pox virus from the animal he was taking care of
- The owner of the sick rodent brought him from Gambia. During transport, the animal came into contact with infected rats
- Soon after, the breeder, his wife and the vet himself fell ill with the monkey pox
- The symptoms of the disease resembled the flu. The only difference was the skin changes, including a huge bladder on the thumb which was extremely painful. «I was afraid I would lose my finger» admitted Zaeske
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage
“I was afraid I would lose my finger”
Kurt Zaeske is retired, but remembers well the outbreak of the monkey pox epidemic in the United States in 2003. The virus came to the country with a shipment of rodents from Gambia and moved to prairie dogs, also known as prairie dogs (squirrel mammals resembling marmots in appearance). ). At that time 71 people became infected with monkey pox.
Zaeske was one of them. At that time, he was running a veterinary practice. One day a client came to him with a sick exotic animal. The man was their breeder, he also ran a pet shop where he sold some of them. Recently, a transport of a dozen prairies came to him, but some dogs fell ill and died. It later turned out that during the journey they had come into contact with rodents that were carriers of the monkey pox virus.
The vet looked after the animal without knowing its “history” yet, and then prescribed it an antibiotic. Shortly thereafter, the owner called to say that he and his wife had fallen ill. The doctor knew that he had been in contact with the animal that had come to the US from another continent, so he immediately connected the facts. «I was frightenedbecause I suspected it was some exotic disease and I tried hard to find out what it was »- he says.
So Dr. Zaeske decided to take blood samples from one of the prairie dogs and send them to the laboratory. During the examination, the rodent’s condition worsened and it was necessary to euthanize the animal. Soon after, the doctor felt sick himself.
At first he thought it was the flu because the symptoms were very similar to that of this popular viral disease. Zaeske had a fever, felt nauseous and severely tired, suffered from severe pain and dizziness. Later, skin lesions appeared, mostly minor, with one exception. «A huge, painful bladder has formed on my thumb. I was afraid that I would lose my finger » – He admitted.
The rest of the text below the video.
Dr. Kurt Zaeske also took an antibiotic and recovered soon, though the pain in his thumb remained with him for some time. The doctor also managed to protect his relatives from infection – the virus did not infect any of his family or staff.
The researchers were able to establish that prairie dogs contracted the monkey pox virus while being transported from Gambia where they came into contact with infected rats. All patients who have been detected in the pathogen in the US have had contact with prairie dogs. Their disease followed a similar pattern, giving them flu-like symptoms. No sick person died of infection.
Prophylactic immunity tests should be performed regularly, at least once a year. You can buy a package of such tests at Medonet Market.
This is not the first monkey pox outbreak
The 2003 outbreak of monkey pox in the US was one of the few cases of the virus spread outside Africa – a region where the pathogen is common, and monkey pox is considered an endemic disease.
Isolated cases were detected only in the UK in 2018. (four infections, all “originated” from Nigeria) i 2021 r. (three cases, also from Nigerian source). That same year, one case was diagnosed in the USA (in a man returning from Nigeria).
In Nigeria alone, more than 2017 cases of monkey pox have been reported since 200, and more than 500 people have been suspected to be infected. The majority were young men (almost 80%) aged 21-40.
The “balance” of the current monkey pox epidemic (as of May 25, 2022) is 228 confirmed infections, 82 suspicions and zero deaths. The virus has reached 19 countries, mostly European. The largest number of cases have been detected so far in the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal.
We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time we devote it to astrology. Is astrology really a forecast of the future? What is it and how can it help us in everyday life? What is the chart and why is it worth analyzing with an astrologer? You will hear about this and many other topics related to astrology in the new episode of our podcast.