infectious disease researchers are hoping to return to the Democratic Republic of the Congo soon to try to trace an exotic infection is alarming experts public health: the largest outbreak ever observed in humans of a virus called monkeypox well known. A first cousin of smallpox, once feared, monkeypox causes almost identical symptoms.
According to a Research News in tomorrow's issue of Science * between February 1996 and February 1997 at least 92 cases of the disease and three deaths were reported in remote area of what was then Zaire. Only 37 documented cases were reported from 1981 to 1986. These results led to in-depth discussions on what could be the cause of the epidemic -. In particular, if the virus moves from man to man more easily than before
medical epidemiologist Ali Khan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta led an international team, organized by the Organization World health (wHO) and the Zairian Ministry of health, who visited 12 villages in the center of the epidemic of five days in February, cutting short his trip due to civil unrest. As Khan and his colleagues detailed in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report from the CDC ( MMWR ) April 11, they believe 73% of 89 people they studied were infected with d 'other people. It would be a big jump from "secondary contact" rate of 30% reported by epidemiologist and expert monkeypox Czechoslovak Zdenek Jezek, who was from 1981 to 1986 studies in Zaire. The recent survey also found a patient who seems to have been the source of eight other infections, which is twice the highest chain of transmission observed previously. "This is not only an outbreak of a rare exotic disease in the middle of nowhere," Khan said. ". Personally, I am concerned about what would happen if the disease manifests itself in a big city"
an explanation of the epidemic, launched by Jezek and others, is that vaccination against smallpox - which also confer immunity to monkeypox - were so successful that they were arrested there almost 2 decades, creating an ever-increasing pool of people who are sensitive to animal viruses. Immunity is further compromised because the Democratic Republic of Congo has high rates of HIV infection, which paralyzes the immune system. Civil war may have contributed another factor: Faced with a growing threat of famine because of the unrest, villagers may have increased their hunting animals that carry monkeypox, which include monkeys, squirrels and rats
In. virologist Peter Jahrling of the Medical Research Institute of the US Army Infectious Diseases at Fort Detrick, Maryland, "low probability" that the epidemic spreads further. "But it is not zero," he added. To get closer, WHO hopes to organize another mission in a month if the political situation is relatively calm. Khan is eager to return. "It is important to go back there and ask what is the extent of the disease and how transmission occurs," said Khan. "We are all waiting for better data."
* For details, Science Online subscribers can link to the full text of the news story about the search.
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