Medical professionals are learning more about the consequences of monkeypox as cases continue to spread around the globe. While blisters, rashes, and fever have already been recognised as typical monkeypox symptoms, a recent case study suggests that there may be a connection between monkeypox and heart issues.
According to a report published on September 2, 2022 in Journals of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), a male patient, age 31, with a confirmed monkeypox infection, reportedly suffered acute myocarditis days following the appearance of skin lesions. The disorder known as myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart muscle, can make the heart less able to pump blood. In addition, it might result in rapid or irregular heartbeats, shortness of breath, and chest pain (arrhythmias).
The case study supported the finding of myocardial inflammation based on the cardiac magnetic resonance investigation. The patient was then given supportive treatment and made a complete clinical recovery. However, this example emphasises cardiac involvement as a potential monkeypox consequence, the case report concluded.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), whose Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, declared the current monkeypox outbreak, monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease (a virus transmitted to humans from animals) with symptoms resembling those (seen in the past) in smallpox patients, though it is clinically less severe.
Viral illnesses both create and result an inflammation in the body, said Dr. Sheela Murali Chakravarthy, director-internal medicine, Fortis Hospital, Bannerghatta Road, Bengaluru. "Any organ can become inflamed, but the heart and nerves are the most frequently affected due to their high energy requirements. According to Dr. Murali Chakravarthy, this inflammation may have an impact on and result in myocarditis, which can lead to cardiac problems, and encephalitis, which can cause inflammation of the brain.
Do people need to worry about this then? According to Dr. Ankita Baidya, infectious disease consultant at HCMCT Manipal Hospital in Dwarka, the chances of something happening in a clinical setting are extremely slim, just like in this "unique case study." "As we can see from the case report, the patient represented a unique circumstance in the recently reported instance.
The guy was a unique instance because he had recently recovered from Covid-19 and was on pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV infection, according to reports. But viral myocarditis is not a recent disease. In complex circumstances, chickenpox might in fact result in myocarditis. Like monkeypox, monkeypox can also result in viral myocarditis, according to Dr. Baidya for Health Shots.