Viruela símica, características demográficas y clínicas. Serie de casos.

Introduction: In May of 2022, the identification of monkeypox cases with human-to-human transmission began, with the sexual pathway being the most frequent form (1-3). Below, we present a case series of 11 patients with monkeypox, who consulted between August and October of 2022. Materials and methods: A retrospective descriptive study was performed. The demographic, clinical, and epidemiological characteristics of the patients were described, and a skin biopsy was performed in one of them. In addition, the main characteristics of the HIV-positive patients were specified. Data was collected and analyzed in Microsoft® Excel. Results: All the patients were male, mean age was 33.9 years. PCR was positive in 9 respiratory swab samples, in 10 skin lesion samples and in 8 scab samples. HIV history was present in 81.8%. All the patients had general malaise and lymphadenopathy; the time from contact to lesions was 13.7 days and 100% were pustules; lastly, systemic symptoms resolved faster than skin lesions. Discussion: The reported case series exhibited a similar behavior to that reported in the literature (male sex identified as homosexual or bisexual), who had frequent HIV coinfection and history of other sexually transmitted infections: 81.8% (n = 9) and 66.6% (n = 6), respectively. Conclusion: The data suggests a close relationship between HIV and monkeypox virus, having in common the transmission, primarily through sexual contact; in addition, the high prevalence of other STIs, which support the statement that it is the main route of transmission during this outbreak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]