The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a warning after a Texas resident returned home from Nigeria while infected with human ape pox. Now isolated in a Dallas hospital, the passenger traveled from Lagos to Dallas via Atlanta ten days ago.
A passenger infected with monkey pox traveled to the United States earlier this month. Photo: Getty Images
A rare but potentially serious disease is emerging in Dallas
Monkeypox is a rare but potentially serious viral disease. The virus causes a flu-like illness and swelling of the lymph nodes. It can then develop into a widespread rash on the face and body. Most infections last two to four weeks. The disease is most common in parts of West Africa. The CDC says infections with this monkey pox strain are fatal in about 1 in 100 people.
“While this case is rare, it is not a cause for concern and we do not anticipate any threat to the public,” Clay Jenkins, a Dallas County judge, said in a statement. The CDC is in liaison with the relevant airlines and health authorities to contact airline passengers and other people who may have been in contact with the patient during two flights.
The infected passenger passed through Atlanta Airport. Photo: Atlanta Airport
Monkeypox takes a ride on an intercontinental flight
This is the first case of monkey pox to be discovered in the United States in 18 years. However, neither the CDC nor the Texas health authorities publish flight information. Authorities confirm that the passenger left Murtala Muhammed International Airport (LOS) in Lagos on July 8th. The flight arrived on July 9th at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) in Atlanta on the same day. A little research can easily determine which airlines and flights the passenger are most likely to have traveled on.
In this case, the existing obligation for all passengers and crew members to wear face masks on board and at airports has reduced the potential risk of infection. The CDC says monkey pox is usually transmitted between people through airway droplets.
“It is believed that the risk of monkeypox spreading via breath droplets to others on planes and at airports is low,” said a CDC statement.
“We are only a flight away from any global infectious disease,” warns Dr. Dr. However, Huang appears relieved to have stopped this potential monkeypox outbreak before it spread to the United States.
Reduced travel numbers also help reduce the transmission of disease across borders. Photo: Getty Images
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COVID-safe practices help reduce risks from other diseases
While COVID is making the headlines, journeys on international flights are regularly accompanied by a slew of exotic and potentially dangerous diseases. Requiring passengers and crew to wear face masks in almost all jurisdictions around the world is preventing many of these airborne diseases from spreading as quickly as they used to.
Along with influenza, tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most well-known airborne diseases. Increased attention to on-board hygiene and aircraft cleaning is also helping to combat a range of communicable diseases that are now largely overshadowed by COVID.
“More and more people use international air traffic,” says the World Health Organization. “Several outbreaks of communicable diseases such as staph food poisoning, measles, influenza, and others have been documented after exposure on an airliner. Exposure to infectious TB in commercial aircraft is also a real problem for passengers and crew. “
The infected passenger is in stable condition and remains in a Dallas hospital.
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