“Countries that are now reporting monkeypox are the countries where there is usually no outbreak of monkeypox,” Rosamund Lewis, head of the Smallpox Secretariat, the WHO’s emergency program, said at a United Nations news conference in Geneva on Tuesday.
This is an emerging disease. “It appeared 20-30 years ago (so) it’s not very well known,” Lewis told reporters. “It is very well described.” “Therefore, the risk to the general public appears to be low, because we know that the major transportation routes are as they have been described in the past.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said cases in parts of the world other than Africa are usually associated with international travel or the importation of smallpox-infected animals.
“Right now we don’t want people to worry,” Murthy said. “These numbers are still small; we want (people) to be aware of the symptoms, and if they are concerned, call their doctor.”
What are the first symptoms of monkeypox disease?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “the feature that distinguishes monkeypox from smallpox is the development of enlarged lymph nodes.”
Next comes a widespread rash on the face and body, including inside the mouth and on the palms and soles.
Painful, raised pox is pearly and fluid-filled, often surrounded by red circles. The CDC said the lesions eventually flake and disappear after two to three weeks.
In the current outbreak, according to the World Health Organization and the CDC, there appear to be more cases causing a rash in the groin area of patients.
Dr. said. John Brooks, MD, medical director of the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on Monday at 2 p.m. Newsletter About the anus.
“In some cases, it has caused lesions in the anus or genitals that are similar to other diseases such as herpes, chickenpox or syphilis,” he said.
A “significant portion of cases” have been seen in the current outbreak among gay and bisexual men, “but certainly not the current risk of exposure to monkeypox exclusively to the gay and bisexual community in the United States. Everyone, everyone, can develop [and] “Monkeypox is spreading,” Brooks said.
In general, the risk of developing monkeypox is moderate for people with multiple sexual partners and low for the general population, according to a rapid risk assessment report published Monday by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control.
However, monkeypox is not considered a sexually transmitted disease.
How does monkeypox spread?
Experts say that close contact with an infected person is necessary for the spread of the monkeypox virus.
Infection can occur after exposure to “broken skin, mucous membranes, respiratory droplets, contaminated bodily fluids or even contact with contaminated linen,” Neil Mabbot, a personal chair of immunopathology at the University of Edinburgh’s College of Veterinary Medicine, said in a statement. † †
Dr. says. Michael Skinner, MD, professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Imperial College. London, in a statement.
Dr. said. Paritosh Prasad, MD, director of the Division of Highly Infectious Diseases at the University of Rochester Medical Center. “They remained infectious until their pests were resolved.” in New York City.
However, based on the available historical information, monkeypox appears to be less contagious than smallpox, Prasad said.
“Monkeypox can be a serious infection, with the mortality rate from this type of monkeypox virus being around 1% in other outbreaks,” said Michael Head, a senior researcher at the World Health Organization. “This often occurs in a low-income environment with limited access to health care. Global Health at the University of Southampton in the UK. No deaths have been reported from the current outbreak.
In the developed world, “It would be unusual to see more than a few cases in an outbreak, and we wouldn’t see (Covid)-like transmission levels,” Head said in a statement.
According to the CDC, common household disinfectants can kill the monkeypox virus.
How is monkeypox treated?
There are no specific medications available to treat monkeypox symptoms, so “treatment is generally supportive,” Jamie Whitworth, professor of international public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said in a statement.
“However, there is a vaccine available that can be given to prevent disease progression,” Whitworth said.
In the United States, a two-dose vaccine called Jynneos has been licensed to prevent monkeypox and can also be used against smallpox. The vaccine has been stockpiled by the US government in case the eradicated disease reappears.
Dr. said. Jennifer McQuiston, deputy director of the Division of Pathogenesis and High Outcome Pathology within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonoses, told reporters in a phone call Monday.
“We hope to maximize distribution of the vaccine to those we know will benefit,” McCuston said. “These are people who have been in contact with known monkeypox patients, health professionals, and very close personal contact, especially those who are at higher risk of serious illness.”
Where did monkeypox originate?
The main vector of monkeypox remains unknown, the agency said, although “African rodents are suspected of playing a role in transmission.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the first known case of monkeypox in humans “was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo during a period of intense efforts to eradicate smallpox.” Since then, most cases have been concentrated in 11 African countries – with several outbreaks in the United States and Europe related to travel or importation from endemic countries.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “pets became infected after they were housed near small mammals from Ghana.” “This was the first time that monkeypox had been reported outside of Africa.”
Jacqueline Howard, Nadia Konang, Jane Christensen, Michael Needleman, Paula Newton, John Bonifield, Naomi Thomas, Alex Hardy and Benjamin Brown of CNN contributed to this report.