CDC has recently issued an alert after a man coming home from Nigeria was found with Monkeypox. He is now in isolation in a Dallas hospital. Ten days ago, the man traveled from Lagos to Dallas. He is now stable and will remain in the Dallas hospital.
What is Monkeypox?
Monkeypox is a very rare disease, but it could become a viral illness. It is similar to the flu, and it comes with the swelling of the lymph nodes. It also includes rashes on the face and body, and the illness can last for up to 4 weeks. This disease is common in West Africa, and it results in death for one in 100 people.
Even if this has happened, we do not need to panic, and there is no threat to the general public. Passengers from the flights and the airlines will be contacted about it.
This is the first case in 18 years. Monkeypox is spread between people with respiratory droplets, and it is good that, with the help of the masks, the potential infection risk was low. Dallas health official Dr Philip Huang stated that: “We are only a plane ride away from any global infectious disease.”
COVID-19 is what we’ve been through for almost two years now, but let’s not forget that international flights can, as well, bring potential new diseases. Passengers wearing masks may stop these diseases from spreading.
There are two diseases most known as being airborne diseases: influenza and tuberculosis. WHO states that: “Increasingly larger numbers of people are using international air travel. Several outbreaks of communicable diseases, such as staphylococcal food poisoning, measles, influenza, and others, following exposure within a commercial aircraft, have been documented. Likewise, exposure to infectious TB on commercial aircraft is a real concern for both passengers and crew.”
