Ministry of Health rules out monkey pox as cause of death in MG

The Ministry of Health said this Wednesday (15) that it had discarded the suspicion of death by smallpox of monkeys in Minas Gerais, the first under investigation in the country.

The possibility was ruled out by Funed (Fundação Ezequiel Dias), in Minas Gerais – one of the four laboratories that are at the forefront of suspected cases of the disease, also known by the English name “monkeypox”. The foundation is still investigating the patient’s causes of death.

According to the Ministry of Health, the 41-year-old man has not had contact with suspected or confirmed cases of the disease, nor has he traveled recently. He lived in Uberlândia, in the Triângulo Mineiro.

“This Wednesday (15), the death under investigation in the state of Minas Gerais was ruled out for monkeypox by the Ezequiel Dias Foundation. It is a 41-year-old man, without travel history and without contact with a suspected or confirmed case for the disease. The causes of death are still under investigation,” the ministry said in a statement.

Brazil has five confirmed cases of monkeypox, three in São Paulo, one in Rio Grande do Sul and one in Rio de Janeiro. So far, another eight cases are under investigation in the country.

The Ministry of Health stated that “control measures were taken immediately, such as isolation and contact tracing on an international flight with the support of Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency)”.

“The Ministry of Health, through the Situation Room and the National CIEVS, continues to liaise directly with the states to monitor cases and trace contacts”, he reinforced in a note this Wednesday (15).

The last two suspects were confirmed this Tuesday (14), in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The last patient from São Paulo with a confirmed diagnosis is 31 years old and returned to the capital on June 6 after a trip to Europe.

In Rio de Janeiro, he is a 38-year-old Brazilian who lives in London, England. He arrived in Brazil on June 11 for a family visit. The man and people he had contact with are in isolation at home. According to the ministry, the clinical picture is stable.

Earlier this month, Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga told Folha that the government is studying the purchase of the smallpox vaccine for specific groups, such as health professionals who live in border regions or deal directly with cases.

With the eradication of the disease, the immunizing agent stopped being applied in Brazil in 1979 and is not available either in the SUS (Sistema Único de Saúde) or in private vaccination clinics.

In a survey carried out by Abcvac (Brazilian Association of Vaccine Clinics) at the request of the Sheet73% of the members responded that the demand for the vaccine has increased.

The main signs and symptoms of monkeypox are fever, skin rashes, and enlarged lymph nodes (adenomegaly).

The disease was already known, but had been recorded mainly in African countries. What has the scientific community on alert was the rapid spread of the virus to other countries outside Africa.