Philippines Reports First Monkeypox Case Since December 2023

Philippine Department of Health announced on Monday the discovery of a new case of monkeypox in the country, the first since December 2023.

According to the local television channel ABS-CBN, the patient is a 33-year-old Filipino with no history of travel outside the Philippines. 

However, the patient had close contact with a traveler three weeks before symptoms appeared.

 The patient's symptoms began over a week ago with a fever, followed by a noticeable rash in various parts of the body. 

The last recorded case of monkeypox in the Philippines was in December 2023, and all previous patients have since recovered.

Last week, the World Health Organization declared the monkeypox outbreak in Africa a global public health emergency of international concern.

Due to growing concerns over the increasing cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and their potential spread to neighboring countries, the WHO urgently convened a meeting of experts to assess the outbreak.