The Directorate‑General of Health of Portugal (DGS) confirmed on Friday that there are 20 more cases of Monkeypox in Porto. There are currently 348 cases of monkeypox in Portugal, predominantly in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo. There are also cases in the north, Alentejo, and the Algarve.
All of the infected are men between the ages of 19 and 61, with most being under 40. All men remain under clinical supervision and are stable.
“The information collected through the epidemiological inquiries is being analyzed to contribute to the evaluation of the outbreak at a national and international level”, said DGS.
The DGS said that an infected person only stops being contagious after all the scabs of the dermatological lesions have fallen which can take over four weeks.
Portugal is currently waiting for 2,700 doses of the vaccine Imvanex, a third-generation vaccine that is currently approved in Europe to prevent smallpox, but that is also effective against Monkeypox.
The vaccine is set to arrive by the end of June, but it is still unclear how it will be distributed to residents.
Those with suspected symptoms should avoid “physical contact with other people and sharing clothes, towels, sheets, and personal objects while having lesions or other symptoms”, according to the DGS.
Monkeypox is contagious and can be transmitted through a wound, the respiratory tract, or the eyes, nose, or mouth.
More than 3,200 confirmed cases of monkeypox and one death have been reported to the World Health Organization in the current outbreak, according to Reuters.
A DGS publicou uma informação para a comunicação relacionada com a infeção humana por vírus Monkeypox. Pretende-se fornecer mensagens e medidas a implementar por parceiros comunitários, que permitam reduzir o risco em eventos ou festivais.https://t.co/uHfSRX71ml#DGS #Monkeypox pic.twitter.com/UV2sLQ2WHG
— DGS (@DGSaude) June 18, 2022