The spread of monkeypox is a public health emergency of international concern, with a clear risk of further international spread, according to the World Health Organization.
A clinical sample associated with a 2003 prairie dog outbreak has been obtained. A human skin sample is depicted in the picture. There are mature virus particles on the left and immature virus particles on the right. The Smith Collection has a picture of the CDC at al.
The designation is the WHO's highest alert level and has been assigned to six disease outbreak since it was introduced.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO chief, said on Thursday that he had convened an emergency committee of experts to discuss the situation.
Tedros decided to declare a public health emergency even though the committee did not agree about the seriousness of the situation.
The rest of the world didn't pay much attention to the spread of monkeypox in parts of Central and Western Africa. It causes mild disease that goes away on its own, though it can be fatal and cause terrible symptoms. It is a close relative of smallpox, one of humanity's biggest killers and the only human disease eradicated through vaccination, and experts warned it could spread around the world to fill the void it left behind. The virus is well understood due to its close proximity to the disease. There are vaccines and treatments that can be used to fight monkeypox. Data on the use of global supplies in monkeypox is sparse. Wealthy countries like the U.S. moved quickly to secure available stock but are facing shortages for months until these are delivered and prioritized giving out first doses to high-risk groups. The African nations where the disease has spread for a long time are struggling to get anything.
Health measures that are targeted. Men who have sex with men are more likely to get monkeypox than men who don't have sex with men. Experts are investigating whether the disease is sexually transmitted, but the outbreak is being driven by sexual contact. In June, the federal government expanded the scope of its monkeypox vaccine push to include people who are most at risk of catching the disease. Public health officials have been careful to avoid language that might stigmatize gay and bisexual men, but experts have criticized the weak messaging as misleading. Tedros said the pattern of transmission presents both an opportunity to implement targeted public health interventions and a challenge because of life threatening discrimination in some countries.
More than 16 thousand. A total of 75 monkeypox cases have been reported to the WHO this year.
The extent of the problem. The ability to monitor the outbreak in rich countries has been hampered by the slow roll out of testing. Tedros said that the information provided to WHO from countries in West and Central Africa is very little. Tedros said the lack of information posed a challenge to control the outbreak.
The World Health Organization says that Monkeypox isn't a global health emergency yet.
There is a one-dose monkeypox vaccine strategy that could help extend supplies.
The world ignores the science of monkeypox.
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