Is conjunctivitis one of the symptoms of monkeypox? Understand

In addition to the most common symptoms, eye manifestations such as conjunctivitis may be associated with monkeypox. Last week, H.Olhos, a reference hospital in ophthalmology in the capital of São Paulo, registered the first case of monkeypox confirmed from eye collection exams. The information is from Estadão.

Four days after the onset of symptoms such as skin lesions, myalgia and a headache, a 30-year-old healthcare professional began experiencing eye irritation and tearing. While waiting for the result of the RT-PCR monkey pox test, the patient decided to seek eye care.

With that, the man was referred for collection of microbiological material from the eyes. Ophthalmologic examination confirmed monkeypox infection, as did RT-PCR. The patient then underwent follow-up at an ophthalmology outpatient clinic and used a local compress, antibiotic eye drops and eye lubricant.

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The case serves as a warning for ophthalmologists to start incorporating monkeypox as part of the differential diagnosis when patients present with ophthalmological symptoms, such as conjunctivitis, blepharitis, keratitis or corneal lesions.

“There are several ocular manifestations that could be linked to monkeypox. On many occasions, ocular manifestations are even more frequent than other manifestations”, says Pedro Antônio Nogueira Filho, head of the H.Olhos Emergency Room to Estadão.

“These manifestations themselves can range from conditions linked to headache in the frontal region, to redness in the eyelid region, to inflammatory conditions in the eyelids, to conjunctivitis itself, followed by ulcerations in the corneas and difficulty looking at the light, among others. corneal lesions, in addition to poor vision. A range of situations that can be present within the condition of monkeypox”, adds the professional.

New monkeypox symptoms

This isn’t the first time an “unusual” symptom has been linked to monkeypox. The signs of recent cases of the disease, which has infected more than 50,000 people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), are different from those recorded in African countries, where the disease has been endemic since the 1970s. .

In the past, the most recurrent manifestations were fever, malaise, swollen lymph nodes, headache, sweating and skin lesions, especially on the face, palms and soles of the feet. Currently, doctors and scientists around the world are noticing that many patients have few lesions, which are located mainly on mucous membranes, such as the genitals and anus.

In addition, the physical aspects of these lesions are similar to pimples or herpes and can delay diagnosis because they are confused with other diseases or conditions.

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This change in the pattern of the disease became the subject of a study published in the journal British Medical Journal. In the work, scientists followed 197 patients who tested positive for the virus in the city of London, UK.

The survey found that all participants had lesions on the skin or mucosa, such as in the mouth or anus. In 56% of patients, the sores appeared on the genitals, while 41% had lesions on the anus. In addition, 61% of participants had fever, 57% had swollen lymph nodes, 31% had muscle pain, and only 13% had injuries without feeling fever or other symptoms.