Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. CJ Tibayan debunks myths regarding this emerging health crisis

We have not fully recovered from Covid-19 and yet here comes another threat to society. If you are one of the lucky people who have not been affected by the flu, don’t be too early to count yourself out. Be vigilant for there’s an emerging health crisis in the form of another virus, monkeypox.

Hosted by PhilCare, PhilLife, Stitch Tech Solutions, and Comm Sense, an insightful lecture about the virus was led by Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Christoper John N. Tibayan. He has been an infectious disease consultant for many hospitals like St. Lukes, Manila Doctors Hospital, and Olivarez General Hospital. 

Transmissions and symptoms

As you know by now, monkeypox is a zoonotic disease which is under the same family as cowpox and monkeypox. This virus can be transmitted from animal to human or human-to-human contact through respiratory droplets, lesion materials, body fluids, and contaminated materials and surfaces.

Dr. CJ also discussed the symptoms of the said virus. Patients can look for unusual rash, fever, headache, pruritus, and lymphadenopathy if they suspect a contagion. He also tackled some of the complications aside from pain, which are scarring blindness, bacterial infection, pneumonia, encephalitis, miscarriage, and even death.

There has been an issue regarding this virus to be sexually transmitted which Dr. CJ also addressed. “By virtue, if we have sexual contact, this means we have a close contact to the patient. It’s not primarily transmitted through the sexual activity itself but having close contact to the person.”

Unfortunately, there is no established antiviral treatment yet for this virus. Basically fever and pain management are addressed via analgesic and paracetamol. Patients also need to be monitored regarding the state of their skin, eye, mouth and other respiratory organs.

How to avoid getting infected

Dr. CJ suggests wearing of gown, eye protection, wearing mask, washing of hands regularly, isolation whenever in the environment of a confirmed or suspected patient. He also advised avoiding fake news. “Monkeypox is a contagious viral illness however, there’s no need to panic. The data are dynamic,” said Dr. CJ. “We need to stay updated with the current guidelines and the current memos from the Department of Health and World Health Organization. Hopefully we get our sources from reputable institutions and organizations because sometimes what worsens our diseases is the spread of fake news. So we must avoid that and stay up to date with these reputable institutions.”

PhilCare which is a health maintenance organization that covers a number of health conditions, including monkeypox (subject to policy provision.) They also have plans that provide coverage on distinct health needs. PhilCare has more than 1,600 affiliate hospitals and clinics, 48,000 affiliate physicians, and 400,000 members. To know more about PhilCare, visit their website.