Spain records second monkeypox death in the country

The health ministry of Spain’s Andalusia has recorded the second monkeypox death in the country, El País reports.

A 31-year-old man was hospitalised with meningoencephalitis caused by the monkeypox virus. He later died in hospital. The first monkeypox death in Spain was documented yesterday in the autonomous community of Valencia.

The US state of New York earlier declared a state disaster emergency over the spread of monkeypox. New York accounts for one in four cases of monkeypox in the US.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has documented 21,699 cases of monkeypox globally so far. Spain ranks second in the world with 4,298 confirmed cases. The US ranks first with 4,907 cases. A week ago, WHO declared the monkeypox outbreak a global health emergency.

The first case of monkeypox was first documented in humans in 1970 on the territory now considered a part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since then, there have been sporadic outbreaks of the disease in various parts of Africa.