From Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure
Palpable fear of contracting Monkey pox disease is now rife among the people of Akure South Local Government Area of Ondo State, following a rumour that a woman residing in the area was bitten by a domestic monkey. The residents of the area, it was gathered, now live in suspicion of each other, as many avoid body contact with others. The tale is that a middle aged woman was bitten by a monkey in the area on Monday evening, and this prompted many to suspect likely spread of the infection. They claim that the woman was bitten by the monkey which was one of the domestic pets in her compound while trying to feed it. According to a reliable source who pleaded anonymity “the victim did not take the monkey bite so seriously until when she started feeling some pains and discomfort in her body.” The source said they had thought it was a whitlow because the spot started developing some blisters and pus within. He added that “when she got to the health centre, one of the nurses who attended to her thought it was a whitlow and wanted to operate it but there was no surgical blade in the health facility.” According to him, “It was brought to the notice of the matron, who noticed that the affected part was more of a bite than whitlow. The lady revealed that she was bitten by the monkey they rear in her house when trying to feed it.” Nonetheless, the source noted that the matron of the health centre immediately referred the woman to the State Specialist Hospital, Akure, for further treatment. Several attempts to reach the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Wahab Adegbenro through calls were not successful