What

Newswise — Monkeypox virus (mpoxv) has re-emerged, designated on August 14 as a global emergency by the World Health Organization. Newly evolved strains of mpox viruses can efficiently spread among people. In addition to skin rashes, mpox infection can cause eye complications including inflammation of the clear tissue covering the iris and pupil called the cornea (keratitis), the tissue covering the white of the eye and the underside of the eyelid (conjunctivitis, or pink eye), and the eyelid (blepharitis).

In a new review article, NIH-funded researchers summarize the natural history of mpox, its modes of transmission, and its clinical course with special attention to the virus' effects on the eye. The authors also address mpox epidemiology and potential approaches to prevention and treatment.

Who

Ashok Kumar, Ph.D., professor of ophthalmology, visual, and anatomical sciences, Wayne State University. 

Vaithi Arumugaswami, DVM, Ph.D., professor of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology at the University of California Los Angeles and member of the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI at UCLA).

Article

Chakravarty N, Hemani D, Paravastu R, Ahmad Z, Palani SN, Arumugaswami V, Kumar A. Mpox Virus and its ocular surface manifestations. The Ocular Surface. 2024/10/01/ 2024;34:108-121. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtos.2024.07.001

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Journal Link: The Ocular Surface