Monkeypox: a concise review

Abstract

Human monkeypox disease (mpox) has resurfaced recently as a public health emergency of international concern in the wake of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, spreading in endemic and nonendemic regions across the globe. The purpose of this concise review is to provide an overview of the background, cause, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mpox. The monkeypox virus (MPXV) is an enveloped double-stranded deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) virus that belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus of the Poxviridae family. In the past, mpox has been primarily a zoonotic disease that affected rural, forested areas in some African countries. There is no doubt that mpox is changing in many ways since the 2022 global outbreak, particularly human-to-human transmission of the disease through sexual contact and new clinical presentations. In spite of the fact that severity and prevalence of the disease vary by age and sex, some common symptoms are present in all patients. Many patients experience fever, muscle pain and headache, swollen lymph nodes, and skin rashes. A clinical sign can be followed by laboratory diagnostic tests such as conventional PCR or real-time PCR. Although there is no specific treatment for mpox, it can be effectively managed with the help of antivirals, smallpox vaccine, and vaccinia immune globulin.