Thai man picks up monkeypox in Qatar, becomes 8th confirmed case
A 23-year-old Thai man returning from Qatar has been confirmed as Thailand’s eighth monkeypox patient, it was disclosed on Friday.
The Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute reported to the Department of Disease Control that the patient reportedly developed a fever and blisters on September 8, while he was still in Qatar.
Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, the department’s director-general, on Friday quoted the patient as saying he had had sexual relations with another man in Qatar.
The patient returned to Thailand on Tuesday and had come in close contact with two of his friends. He then went to the Bamrasnaradura Institute for an examination on Wednesday and was later confirmed to have contracted monkeypox.
“The patient developed symptoms while he was overseas. He has no history of visiting any community or going to crowded places. He visited the doctor immediately,” Opas said.
He added that it is not easy to contract monkeypox, but advised people against having sex with strangers or getting close to people with symptoms like blisters on the body.
Additional information on the disease can be obtained by calling the Department of Disease Control 1422 hotline.
Thailand has had eight confirmed cases of monkeypox. Globally, there are 54,709 cases and 18 deaths due to the disease, as of September 11. Most of the cases are in Europe.
