According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), infections have continued to rise globally, with more than 35,000 cases across 92 nations and territories, with 12 deaths.

“Almost 7,500 cases were reported last week, a 20 per cent increase over the previous week, which was also 20 per cent more than the week before,” said WHO Director General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, during his regular press briefing from Geneva.

Majority of cases are being reported from Europe and the Americas, mostly among men, who have sex with themselves.

Cuba confirmed its first case of the virus late on Saturday through its Public Health Ministry after detecting the viral disease in a male tourist, who had arrived from Italy within the week.

The Italian stayed in a rental home and toured various destinations in the western provinces of the Caribbean island nation before falling ill, the ministry said in a brief statement.

He sought medical attention on Thursday after presenting symptoms, including skin lesions, and then fell into cardiac arrest, from which he recovered, the statement said.

The patient remains in critical condition.

Also, a man in Indonesia has tested positive for an ailment, making him the country’s index case, authorities confirmed at the weekend.

The 27-year-old, who lives in the capital, Jakarta, had returned from an overseas trip on August 8, 2022, Health Ministry spokesperson Mohammad Syahril said at a news conference.

The man began experiencing symptoms five days later and went to see a doctor. He tested positive on Friday night, and is now isolated at home, Syahril added.

MEANWHILE, a recent study conducted by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases assessed the viability and viral load of monkeypox virus (MPXV) on household objects and surfaces.

Samples were collected from frequently used objects in the household of an individual, who had been infected with the virus. The sampling was conducted 15 days after the patient had left home to be admitted to the hospital.

The samples were then incubated to allow for virus isolation and detection of viable viruses. Importantly, treating all incubated samples with penicillin/streptomycin, amphotericin B and gentamicin prevented any potential contamination with bacteria or fungi.

The researchers concluded: “People infected with MPXV should be quickly isolated, with special precautions taken while handling materials and surfaces used by the patient. Appropriate respiratory protection and use of commercial disinfectants for household cleaning are also warranted.

“The risk potential of different objects within a household for MPXV contamination should be documented. Thus, adequate cleaning and disinfection protocols, along with specific recommendations to vulnerable persons and communities, should be publicised.

“The infectivity of MPXV depends on the viral titers. Future studies, including those with multiple time point sampling protocols with a record of the environmental conditions, multiple applicator types and different types of transport media, are recommended.”

ALSO, doctors in India have sounded the alarm over a new virus dubbed ‘tomato flu’ that has infected dozens of children.

The infection was spotted in May in the southern state of Kerala and it is feared to be a new variant of hand, foot and mouth disease.

Experts are also probing whether it is the after-effect of a mosquito-borne infection, but they have not ruled out an entirely new pathogen.

So far, 82 children under five years have been diagnosed with tomato fever since May and a further 26 youngsters up to age 10 are suspected cases.

The infection gained its name because it causes an ‘eruption’ of red painful blisters across patients’ bodies that ‘gradually enlarge to the size of a tomato.’

Most patients also suffer high fever and intense joint pain, but fatigue, sickness and diarrhoea have also been reported.

Doctors say it is ‘very contagious’ and they fear it could spill into adult populations if the current outbreak is not brought under control.

It comes as the world still reels from the COVID pandemic amid a global outbreak of monkeypox.

Writing in the scientific journal The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, medics said: “Children are at increased risk of exposure to tomato flu as viral infections are common in this age group and spread is likely to be through close contact.

“Young children are also prone to this infection through the use of nappies, touching unclean surfaces, as well as putting things directly into the mouth.

“Given the similarities to hand, foot, and mouth disease, if the outbreak of tomato flu in children is not controlled and prevented, transmission might lead to serious consequences by spreading in adults as well.”

Meanwhile, people with monkeypox are being urged to avoid contact with their pets after a pet dog tested positive for the tropical disease.

The WHO confirmed the first human-to-animal case had been detected in a greyhound in Paris who slept in the same bed as its gay infected owners.

WHO technical lead for monkeypox, Dr. Rosamund Lewis, said the case highlighted how people who test positive for monkeypox should “isolated from their pets.”

She also said ‘waste management is critical to lowering the risk of contaminating rodents and other animals outside the household.

The pet dog case, which was reported last week, confirms scientists’ fears it is possible for the virus to be transmitted to animals.

The incident on its own is not a concern, but there are fears the disease will rapidly evolve if it is passed into livestock or rodents who live in large groups and have close contact with people.