Seven out of 11 people who tested positive for mpox (formerly monkeypox) in Davao Region also live with HIV, with majority of the co-infected cases involving males. This was reported in a press briefing by a top official from the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC), SPMC chief Dr. Ricardo Audan.
Since April 10, SPMC has already recorded a total of 14 mpox cases, so that half of the total number involve people living with HIV. Among these seven PLHIVs, four are currently in isolation at SPMC, one patient has died, one has recovered, and one tested positive again due to close contact exposure.
“Hindi natin masasabi kung ano yung transmission talaga, but possibly because of their activities (We can’t really say what the exact transmission is, but possibly due to their activities),” Audan was quoted as saying.
Audan noted that none of the patients had any travel history, but then he attributed the transmission to the assumed sexual behaviors of those involved. “Since these are HIV patients, they may have engaged in sexual activities that we are not aware of. I don’t want to offend anyone, but we don’t know who they’ve been with,” he said in the vernacular.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), those with multiple sexual partners are at higher risk of contracting mpox, with transmission possibly occurring during contact before sores have fully healed and new skin has formed. Mpox presents with a rash, fever, headache, muscle aches, and swollen lymph nodes.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mpox is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus. It can cause a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes and fever. While most people fully recover from it, some get very sick, and thus require medical care.
“Anyone can get mpox,” the WHO stressed, adding that it spreads from contact with infected, including: persons, through touch, kissing, or sex; animals, when hunting, skinning, or cooking them; materials, such as contaminated sheets, clothes or needles; and pregnant persons, who may pass the virus on to their unborn baby.
