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Diagnosis and management of Monkeypox in primary care

Our recent article in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine  discuses the diagnosis and management of Monkeypox in UK primary care settings but is also relevant to primary care clinicians working in other countries outside West and Central Africa that have  seen Monkeypox cases in 2022.

Since its discovery in 1958 in monkeys, the Monkeypox virus has been rarely found outside west and central Africa until the current global outbreak. The first human case of the virus was in an infant from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 1970; the infection has since spread to other regions, primarily in Africa. The first case of the current outbreak was confirmed on 6 May 2022, in the UK and was linked to travel to Nigeria. Two subsequent UK cases were detected a week later; however, neither affected individuals reported contact with the primary case in the UK nor travel to Africa. 

On 23 July 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the current Monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, as the number of cases increased rapidly around the world. As of 9 September 2022, 57,016 cases have been confirmed in 96 non-endemic regions, with the UK having one of the highest number of cases worldwide (3484 cases).

As we understand more about the current outbreak, particularly the community transmission of the virus, primary care clinicians may be the first point of healthcare access. Therefore, awareness of the signs and symptoms of the disease and current management strategies is crucial to providing optimal care and advice to patients.

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