Date issued: 01 July 2022 (update to 23 June 2022)
Issued by: Dr Mihaela Ivan, Acting Deputy Chief Health Officer Communicable Disease
Issued to: Health professionals
Key messages
- Monkeypox is a rare disease that is caused by infection with the monkeypox virus.
- Since mid-May 2022 there have been cases of monkeypox reported from multiple countries that are not endemic for monkeypox virus, and local transmission has occurred in these countries.
- Monkeypox may be spread from person-to-person through skin-to-skin contact, contact with contaminated items or surfaces, and respiratory droplets.
- To date there have been five unrelated cases notified in Victoria.
- The fifth case is a man in his 40s who travelled interstate and is isolating away from the community.
- The Department of Health is working with interstate health authorities and contacting a small number of people who have been in contact with the case.
- Anyone developing symptoms that may be consistent with monkeypox should seek medical care, wearing a mask and calling ahead to make sure they can be isolated away from others.
- Clinicians should consider testing for monkeypox in returned travellers with compatible symptoms.
- Monkeypox is an urgent notifiable condition, in accordance with Victorian statutory requirements
- .Read the full Alert: Health warning on monkeypox.
