Russia has registered its first case of monkeypox, federal health authorities confirmed Tuesday.
“The infection was found in a young man who came back from a trip through European countries and went to a medical facility with a characteristic rash,” state consumer protection watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said in a statement.
Rospotrebnadzor said the patient, whose symptoms are mild, has been isolated in an infectious diseases hospital.
"Contact persons have been established, they are being monitored by doctors," the statement said.
It added that the man's illness was established quickly and “helped prevent further spread of the infection.”
Russia’s Health Ministry said the country’s healthcare system has been preparing for an influx of monkeypox patients since May and that guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the virus have been distributed to Russia’s regions.
An outbreak of infections in Europe and the United States has fueled concerns worldwide over monkeypox, a rare disease belonging to the same family of viruses as smallpox that is normally endemic to West and Central Africa.
Russia has been one of the countries hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, with nearly 1 million excess deaths counted between the start of the pandemic and January 2022.
Federal health authorities last month removed all remaining nationwide coronavirus restrictions.
AFP contributed reporting.
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