KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 17 — A new mpox case was confirmed in Malaysia yesterday in a Malaysian man without recent travel history abroad, indicating local transmission in the community.
The positive mpox clade II case was the first mpox infection confirmed by the Ministry of Health (MOH) in the country, out of 58 suspected cases reported this year. To date, Malaysia has 10 confirmed cases since July 26, 2023, all clade II infections.
Infections from clade II mpox are generally less severe than clade I; more than 99.9 per cent of people survive, according to the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), compared to clade I with up to 10 per cent of people dying from it.
“The patient is a Malaysian man who started showing symptoms of fever, sore throat, and cough on September 11, while rashes began appearing on September 12,” Health director-general Dr Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan said in a statement today.
“The patient had no history of overseas travel in the 21 days before symptoms appeared; he is currently in isolation and is in stable condition. All of the patient’s contacts are being identified and their health status will be monitored according to tight standard operating procedures (SOPs).”
Dr Radzi’s statement did not indicate the location of the positive mpox case.
The current global outbreak of mpox is clade 1B, a new virus strain spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), one of the main reasons for the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring a public health emergency of international concern last August 14 for mpox.
The Health DG urged high-risk individuals with mpox symptoms like fever, swollen lymph nodes, and rashes or blisters to immediately seek examination and treatment at the nearest health care facility.
People are also advised to avoid direct touch or sex with individuals suspected or confirmed to have mpox infection, besides maintaining hand hygiene like washing hands or using hand sanitiser.
Medical practitioners are required to notify suspected mpox cases to the nearest district health office (PKD) via the e-Notification system. For these cases, blister swabs, oral swabs, and a blood or serum sample need to be sent to laboratories that provide mpox virus detection tests.
The symptoms of mpox, caused by the monkeypox virus, include fever and rashes, blisters, or scabs on the face, palm, soles of the feet, or genitals, as well as conjunctivitis.
Infection can occur by direct skin-to-skin contact with a mpox rash or scabs from a person with mpox or contact with saliva, upper respiratory secretions (snot, mucus), and bodily fluids or lesions around the anus, rectum, or vagina from a person with mpox.
“The incubation period before an individual shows symptoms is between five and 21 days from exposure to infection,” Dr Radzi said.
“Individuals positive for mpox can infect other people between a day before symptoms appear until the scabs are dry and gone completely. Generally, mpox cases can recover on their own without specific treatment.”
Singapore’s Health Minister Ong Ye Kung reportedly said earlier this month that mpox would likely be a “troublesome virus which we can manage, without major disruptions to our daily lives.”
