The monkeypox virus is often transmitted before the first symptoms.

The monkeypox virus is often transmitted before the first symptoms appear, suggests a study published on Wednesday, the results of which have not yet been confirmed but which may play an important role in managing the outbreak of infections.

The “presymptomatic transmission” of Monkeypox, whose symptoms are mainly characterized by skin rashes, seems “considerable”, according to the authors of this study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).

This work was carried out in the UK, one of the first countries where the current outbreak has spread.

Since spring, many cases of this infection have appeared in Europe, including Portugal and the American continent, and until then it was mainly present in several African countries.

Although this outbreak, which has affected nearly 80,000 people and caused some 30 deaths, now appears to be winding down, health officials remain vigilant.

For this, it is important to know the risk of “silent” transmission, that is, during the incubation period and before the patient is affected by the first symptoms.

The study authors, led by epidemiologist Thomas Ward, attempted to answer this question by examining data from nearly 3,000 British patients.

As with the current outbreak as a whole, it is mostly men who have had same-sex relationships.

The research allowed us to get an idea about two types of ‘delay’ [atraso, em português] and compare them with each other.

The first is the incubation time, during which the patient carries the virus without knowing it, and the second is the time that elapses from the appearance of symptoms in a given patient, until its appearance in the person to whom the virus is transmitted. illness.

The scientists concluded that this second delay tends to be shorter than the first, suggesting transmission before the first symptoms.

This presymptomatic transmission may account for more than half of cases and can occur up to four days before symptoms, the researchers estimate.

However, these results still need to be confirmed by other studies, other scientists emphasized in a commentary also published by the BMJ.

Currently, and even with this work, presymptomatic transmission “is not irrefutable”, they warn, although they recognize that the study marks an important step in that direction, due to the large sample of patients and the seriousness of the statistical models used. .