The Philippines has detected its fourth case of monkeypox who had no travel history in any of the countries with confirmed cases.
The 25-year-old Filipino patient is the third monkeypox infection discovered in less than a week.
The DOH said in a statement that intensive case investigation and contact tracing is currently being implemented for the new patient. The patient had 14 close contacts: six of them are now undergoing quarantine while one is in an isolation facility taking care of a person with monkeypox.
The status of the remaining six close contacts are still being confirmed.
The health department advised the public that monkeypox is transmitted via skin-to-skin contact.
“Ang monkeypox ay kumakalat kapag nadikit sa balat ng may sakit na ito na siyang nakikitaang may mga butlig, o kaya sa kagamitan na nahawakan ng may sakit. Kung nakararanas ng lagnat, pamamaga ng kulani, at mga butlig sa balat, agad na kumonsulta sa pagamutan,” DOH Officer-in-Charge Maria Rosario Singh-Vergeire said.
— Ronald Espartinez