The Center for Market Research and Consumer Protection at the University of Baghdad held a seminar entitled “Monkeypox” that is a viral disease that can be spread between people or between people and certain animals whose symptoms are very similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients that is an acute contagious disease caused by the variola virus, a member of the orthopoxvirus family although it is less clinically dangerous. It is noteworthy that eating undercooked meat and other animal products derived from infected animals is one of the potential risk factors of this case, where people living in or near forest areas may be indirectly exposed to infected animals.
Human-to-human transmission can result from close contact with respiratory secretions, skin lesions of an infected person or newly contaminated objects, and is also transmitted through the placenta from mother to fetus (which can lead to congenital monkeypox) or during close contact during and after childbirth. Symptoms include fever, severe headaches, enlarged lymph nodes, back and muscle pain and severe asthenia (lack of energy). Enlarged lymph nodes are a distinctive feature of monkeypox compared to other diseases that may initially look similar to it (chickenpox, measles and smallpox) in addition to the appearing rashes that are often concentrated on the face or limbs and the rash develops into vesicles and then blisters ending with crusts. To protect humans from this disease, people should get vaccinated to have immunity up to 85% to get ride of infection.
