Monkeypox Can Be Contained—but Time Is Running Out

Anne Rimoin has seen the rise of monkeypox in parts of West and Central Africa over the past two decades.

Rimoin is a professor of epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles. If it were to get into a population where it could spread quickly, we could see extended chains of transmission, giving this virus a runway that it hasn't had before.

The warning signs were laid out in a paper back in 2010. Europe and North America are facing an outbreak of a rare virus. More than 1,400 infections have been confirmed in 31 countries

Monkeypox has been spreading between humans over the past five years, according to a new analysis of genome data. The current spread of cases seems to involve at least two separate incidents. At a time when Nigeria was experiencing a sudden surge in cases, it is thought that these may have started around the same time.

Several countries, including the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada, have responded with a containment strategy known as ring vaccination, which involves tracking the close contacts of patients, asking them to self-isolate, and offering them a vaccine. The UK has ordered 20,000 doses of Imvanex, while Germany has ordered 40,000.

The strategy should prove to be effective, according to computer models. The combination of contact tracing and ring vaccination is predicted to reduce the likelihood of new cases by 78 to 89 percent according to research conducted by the nonprofit research organization.

Will this strategy be sufficient? While the monkeypox has not caused any deaths, scientists worry about a certain sense of complacency and some believe health authorities still need to do more to keep the disease out of the public eye.

One problem with models is that they don't account for vaccine hesitancy. According to a report released in May, only 15 of 107 community contacts and 169 of 245 health care workers in the UK chose to get a monkeypox vaccine after being exposed.

When it comes to the importance of getting protected and quickly handling suspected cases, frontline health care workers need to be better educated.