Freiburg (dpa / lsw) - The first monkeypox patient in the southwest has been infected with the West African variant of the virus. This was the result of an investigation at the University Hospital Freiburg, as a spokesman said on request. The patient left the clinic last weekend for home isolation.
Diseases with the West African variant are considered to be milder than those with the second circulating in humans, the Central African variant.
The man from the Ortenau district had previously been in Spain and was treated in Freiburg after his return at the end of May. Another person from the Ortenau district, who had accompanied the man on his trip to Spain, also tested positive for monkeypox a little later.
The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Health is not aware of any other cases, as a spokesman said. The state health department continues to assess the risk for the entire population as low. According to the Robert Koch Institute, 44 cases of monkeypox were known in Germany by Wednesday.
According to health authorities, the virus usually causes only mild symptoms such as fever, headache, muscle pain and skin rash. However, monkeypox can also have severe courses, and fatal illnesses are possible in individual cases. The consequences of surviving an infection can be scarring and, rarely, blindness.
