Monkeypox Cases Increase by 55.9 Percent: WHO
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Monkeypox Cases Increase by 55.9 Percent: WHO

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Rodrigo Andrade By Rodrigo Andrade | Journalist & Industry Analyst - Wed, 07/06/2022 - 16:47

A World Health Organization (WHO) report indicates that 58 countries report monkeypox cases, with 85 percent of them being registered in the EU, making it the most affected region in the world. 

During a press conference in Geneva, Fadela Chaib, spokeswoman, WHO, warned that the cases have increased by over 50 percent since the previous evaluation: “Eighty-five percent of the cases are in the EU. This is followed by the African region, the Americas, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Pacific.”

The previous report on monkeypox dated June 30, 2022 counted 3,413 cases, showing a 55.9 percent increase in only one week. Despite the growth in the number of confirmed cases, the disease has only caused one death so far, reported the UN Health Agency. 

“Some cases have been reported in children and in people who have a compromised immune system,” said Chaib. She also explained that most identified cases have occurred among men who have sex with men but she highlighted that “other vulnerable groups are also at high risk.” While monkeypox has not been classified as an international public health emergency, the UN Health Agency is taking special care and asking countries to keep monitoring this situation. The UN “continues to call on countries to pay special attention to monkeypox cases in an attempt to curb new infections,” said Chaib.  

Experts agree that monkeypox is transmitted from person to person only by direct contact, meaning there is no transmission by air, food or water contamination. The efficiency of contagion is low. “The current epidemiology of monkeypox cases is unusual because most cases are unlinked and will mean that vigilance is required across the world, but unlike SARS-CoV-2 this virus is better understood and methods to prevent its spread can be actioned swiftly,” said David Tscharke, Head of the Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, John Curtin School of Medical Research.

Cases in Mexico doubled between June 15 and June 22, increasing from five to 11 active cases. Regarding the vaccine, Hugo López-Gatell, Deputy Minister of Health, stated “there are two vaccines that provide mediocre protection against monkeypox and there is a drug that does not provide a definitive solution.” 

Last month, López-Gatell also highlighted the difference between a pandemic like COVID-19 and this monkey pox outbreak: “We have five cases in Mexico, four in Mexico City, one confirmed in Jalisco, although the patient was from the US. We are going to find cases sporadically. Of these five, one was infected by another from the same group, but there is no information that it will become a pandemic like COVID-19,” as reported by MBN. 

 

Photo by:   Gerd Altmann
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