Germany: 469 Monkeypox Infections Confirmed, Most of them in Berlin

According to the Robert Koch Institute, as many as 469 Monkeypox cases have been reported in 14 out of 16 federal states in Germany. Most infections were identified in Berlin.

Berlin, June 22nd, 2022 (The Berlin Spectator) — The Monkeypox virus is continuing to spread in Germany. In Berlin, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) just released its latest update on the matter. Fourteen federal states reported Monkeypox cases, so far. They are Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Berlin, Brandenburg, Hamburg, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein and Thuringia.

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Temperature and Headache

Especially in Berlin, the situation is bad. Two thirds of Germany’s Monkeypox infections were confirmed in the capital. Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey stated the Senate was monitoring the situation carefully. “Berlin is Germany’s Monkeypox hotspot, and this is not a good record”, she said at a press conference. The disease was spreading more quickly in Berlin than in any other federal state.

So far, 317 cases were identified in Berlin. Twenty-three Monkeypox patients needed to be treated at hospitals until now. The Senate Health Administration said the first symptoms were temperature, headache, back and muscle pain, swollen lymphatic glands and a rash that usually started in the face and spread over the entire body afterwards. Affected persons needed to call their doctor first and follow the instructions they got from him or her.

Sexual Contacts

Most Monkeypox patients recover after a few weeks. Only very few of them die, according to the Senate Administration of Health. The authority said sexual contacts with changing partners and unknown persons should be avoided. Practicing safer sex was recommended because the Monkeypox virus was transmitted via mucous membranes.

Since May of this year, the Monkeypox virus is spreading from human to human without any epidemiological connection to Western or Central Africa, the regions where it has been spreading for years. So far, the question why this is the case has not been answered.

Low Threat

A statement by the Robert Koch Institute says it was still possible to limit the spread of the Monkeypox virus if infections were identified on time and recommended measures were taken. The RKI believes the threat to the general population is low.

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