The patient, a 36-year-old Italian man, developed a range of symptoms – including fatigue, fever and sore throat – nine days after returning from a trip to Spain where he had unprotected sex.
The first known human case to be found at the same time positive for monkeypox, Covid-19 and HIV announced a scientific team.
According to a report published in the Journal of Infection, the patient, a 36-year-old Italian man whose name has not been released, developed fever, sore throat, fatigue, headache and groin inflammation about nine days after returning from a five-day trip to Spain. . The man tested positive for the coronavirus three days after showing symptoms.
It also developed seriously skin rashes on the face and other parts of the body, followed by the formation of blisters. Given the seriousness of the situation, the man then visited the emergency department of a hospital, where he was then referred to the infectious disease unit for admission.
According to Newsweek, the man’s examination revealed spots and skin lesions on various parts of the body, including the perianal area. Moderate enlargement of the liver and spleen and painful swelling of the lymph nodes were also noted.
The test report confirmed the presence of monkeypox infection as well. He also tested positive for HIV. In addition, sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 genome confirmed that it was also infected by the Omicron BA.5.1 subvariant. The man was vaccinated against the coronavirus with two doses of Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine.
His case was published in the medical journal Journal of Infection on August 19. The man was released from the hospital after almost a week. He recovered from COVID-19 and monkeypox, although a small scar remained, while he began treatment for his HIV infection.
“This case highlights how the symptoms of monkeypox and COVID-19 can overlap, and confirms that in case of co-infection, knowledge of sexual habits is crucial to making the correct diagnosis,” the researchers point out in their reference.
“Of note, the monkeypox oropharyngeal smear was still positive after 20 days, suggesting that these individuals may still be contagious for several days after clinical remission. Consequently, physicians should encourage appropriate precautions,” they warn.
The researchers also said that this is the only known case of monkeypox virus, COVID-19 and HIV co-infection, while clarifying that there is not yet enough evidence to support that this combination can make the patient’s condition worse.
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