GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines – Health authorities have placed two people in isolation in the Soccsksargen region after they showed symptoms similar to mpox as part of ongoing efforts to monitor and keep the virus from spreading.
Dr. Dyan Parayao, head of the Department of Health-Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (DOH-RESU) in the region, told reporters Monday, September 2, that the patients had symptoms such as skin rashes, lesions, and fever.
“They have been placed under a 21-day isolation,” she said.
Parayao said swab samples have been sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) for confirmatory tests.
Authorities said the patients are receiving medical care while health personnel have continued to trace their potential contacts. Parayao said the DOH has identified and quarantined several people who were in close contact with the two patients.
The DOH-Soccsksargen emphasized that there is still no confirmed mpox case in the region, but the two patients were isolated as a precaution.
Parayao said health workers are working to determine the travel history and exposure of the two patients.
DOH-Soccsksargen Director Arestides Tan instructed provincial and municipal health officers to strengthen their surveillance efforts for mpox “down to the community level.”
Earlier, Dr. Tan said they have been preparing for mpox since the first case in the country was detected in 2022. He said Task Force Mpox, formed in 2022, has been reactivated in the region.
The task force will focus on preventing possible community transmission, monitoring barangays and communities, and training health workers.
On Sunday, September 1, the health department said it logged three more mpox cases, raising the total number of confirmed active cases in the country to eight.
Officials said the new cases involved people who had “anonymous” sexual encounters with multiple partners and close skin-to-skin contact with someone showing skin symptoms. Mpox is primarily transmitted through such close, skin-to-skin contact.
Health experts said people should practice good hygiene and see a doctor if they show mpox symptoms. Mpox, which used to be called monkeypox, is a rare but potentially serious viral illness. It usually starts with flu-like symptoms and then causes a rash that begins on the face and spreads to other parts of the body. While it is related to smallpox, it is generally less severe. – Rappler.com