Israel detects 1st monkeypox case in 2023

Jerusalem, June 23 (IANS) Israel has detected a case of monkeypox disease for the first time in 2023, the country's Health Ministry said in a statement.

A man in his 50s who travelled from Portugal to Israel contracted the disease despite being vaccinated against the virus, the Ministry noted on Thursday.

According to the Ministry, vaccinated people may contract the disease if others around them have a high viral load.

An epidemiological investigation revealed that no other people had contact with the man and were exposed to the virus, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Ministry advised anybody who had travelled abroad and then returned home with a fever and a blistering rash to see a doctor.

Between May and October last year, 262 monkeypox cases were diagnosed in Israel. Since then, no other cases have been reported until the present one.