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Updated June 9th, 2022 at 07:37 IST

WHO describes monkeypox as 'real risk' in non-endemic countries as cases top 1,000 mark

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday upped its warning over the clustered outbreak of monkeypox as global virus cases surpassed the 1,000 mark.

Reported by: Dipaneeta Das
WHO
IMAGE: AP/Shutterstock | Image:self
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The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday upped its warning over the clustered outbreak of monkeypox as global virus cases surpassed the 1,000 mark. In a press briefing, WHO director-general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus outlined that "the risk of monkeypox becoming established in non-endemic countries is real," but preventable. The chief of the apex health care body recommended that there is no immediate need for mass vaccination as no deaths from solely the virus transmission has been reported so far in the non-endemic countries.

Dr. Ghebreyesus further notified that the sudden and unexpected surge in monkeypox in several non-endemic countries suggests that the virus must have undergone undetected transmission for "how long we don't know". He added, that the community transmission was observed mostly (but not only) in homosexuals. The WHO chief also noted that some countries now have begun to report cases among women.

"More than 1,000 confirmed cases of monkeypox gave now been reported to WHO from at least 29 countries that are not endemic for the disease," Dr. Ghebreyesus said.

What is monkeypox?

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease caused by the monkeypox virus. It is commonly found in Central western Africa amid densely populated tropical rainforests. The virus can spread from animal to human as well as transmit from human to human. Symptoms of monkeypox are a typical fever, intense headache, muscle aches, back pain, swollen lymph nodes, and rash or lesions on the skin, that last for 2-4 weeks, WHO outlines.

Is WHO considering mass vaccination?

As of now, the WHO has not recommended mass vaccination for the zoonotic disease. "in few places where vaccines are available, they are being used to protect those who may be exposed, such as health workers and laboratory personnel," the WHO chief said in his briefing on Wednesday. The health care organisation further marked the 4-days post-vaccination exposure as a "higher risk" for close contacts.

As infection reports continue to come from countries where the virus is less commonly noticeable, Dr. Tedros flagged: "It is clearly concerning that monkeypox is spreading where it has not been seen before. At the same time, we must remember that so far this year there have been more than 1,400 suspected cases in Africa and 66 deaths."

Monkeypox could be the 'peak of the iceberg'

WHO on May 28 said that the current status of the monkeypox outbreak is just the "peak of the iceberg." Noting the "unusual" spread of the virus, WHO’s epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention chief Sylvie Briand said, “We don't know if we are just seeing the peak of the iceberg”. The UK first reported the monkeypox case on May 7. This came before Greece became the 29th country on Wednesday to report the first case of monkeypox after infections were recorded in the US, UK, Spain, Germany, Belgium, France, and more in the past months.

(Image: AP/Shutterstock)

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Published June 9th, 2022 at 07:37 IST

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