A 28-year-old man has become the fifth monkeypox patient in South Africa since the first case was reported in the country in June, Health Minister Joe Phaahla announced on Friday.
Phaahla said the patient from Johannesburg has a travel history to the Netherlands and Spain.
He added that this meant the country now had recorded five positive cases of the disease between 22 June and 17 August this year.
While monkeypox was considered “low risk” in South Africa, the high number of confirmed positive cases was becoming a cause for concern, Phaahla said.
“Although monkeypox is less contagious than smallpox and Covid-19, and causes less severe illness, the current rising number of confirmed positive cases is becoming a cause for concern and cannot be taken for granted,” he told reporters.
The first two cases recorded in June had no recent travel, while the third one was a tourist from Switzerland and had since fully recovered and returned home, records showed.
“There is no link between the first four cases, while the team is trying to establish if there is a link between the fourth and fifth cases since both of them have been to the same country – Spain – which has so far recorded over 5,000 positive cases and two deaths,” Phaahla said.
The World Health Organisation declared the current monkeypox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in July.
There are currently 28,000 reported cases of monkeypox cases – and 11 deaths – worldwide.
NM/jn/APA