Because it matters

Monkey pox control is important for public health. Some people with smallpox may have only a small rash or spots that are confused with something else.

        What it means to you

Anyone can get monkey pox, but gay and bisexual men are disproportionately affected by the current epidemic. If you have an unexplained rash or skin defect or think you may have been exposed, seek medical attention. The Biden government announced this week that it is expanding its vaccine response to monkeypox outbreaks in the United States for people at higher risk of contracting the disease. There are over 350 confirmed cases at the moment, but the lack of testing so far means that the number of cases is probably much higher. About 296,000 doses of Jynneos, a vaccine approved for smallpox and smallpox and smallpox, will be shipped in the coming weeks, the US Department of Health and Human Services said on Tuesday, with 56,000 doses immediately available. A total of 1.6 million doses will be released from the federal reserve this year, HHS reported. The vaccines will be distributed to communities as needed, according to health officials. People eligible for the vaccine include people with “confirmed and suspected” exposure to monkey pox, the HHS said, including men who have sex with men they think could have been recently exposed. Anyone can catch and transmit monkey pox, but most cases of the current outbreak have been found in men who have sex with men, in a relationship with close contact or sexual intimacy. The New York Department of Health has started offering the Jynneos smallpox vaccine to gay and bisexual men who believe they may be at higher risk (if they have had anonymous sex or multiple partners in the past two weeks). Monkey pox is a disease caused by an orthopoxic virus that belongs to the same family as the viruses that cause smallpox and smallpox in cows. Monkey pox is endemic to West and Central Africa. Reports of this in the US were rare but not unprecedented. (There were two cases reported in 2021 and 47 cases in 2003 in an outbreak associated with pet dogs.) In a health warning to doctors in mid-June about the spread of monkey pox in the United States, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned that some cases of monkey pox could be lost in trials and that smallpox rash monkeys could be mistaken for (or are accompanied by) other common infections, such as herpes. The director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky has previously said that current smallpox infections in humans cause people to develop blemishes that look more like pimples or blisters as opposed to a more classic rash that spreads, according to NBC. Although no deaths from the outbreak have been reported in the United States, it is important for individuals and their health care providers to catch early symptoms to reduce the outbreak of monkey pox that occurs in many countries. “I think it’s something we need to watch and see how widespread it can be, but there is no need to worry or panic about any of this,” said Dr Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease specialist and senior fellow at Johns Hopkins. Center for Health Insurance. Monkey pox is not new, he added, and we already have some tools to stop it from spreading, including smallpox vaccines. Examples of “smallpox” or smallpox rash in monkeys. NHS England High Impact Infectious Diseases Network

What is monkey pox? How serious is it?

Monkey pox is a zoonotic disease, which means it is transmitted from animals to humans. It is caused by an orthopoxic virus of the same family as the one that causes smallpox, although smallpox is clinically considered more serious than monkeypox. There are two branches or types of monkey pox virus, according to the World Health Organization: the West African branch and the Congo basin branch. The West African strain, which has been identified in recent cases, according to a WHO presentation on May 26, has a mortality rate of less than 1%. The Congo Basin or Central African Region has the highest mortality rate of up to 10%, according to the WHO. Monkey pox has caused 72 deaths this year in endemic countries, according to the WHO, but no deaths have been reported in the current outbreak in non-endemic countries, including the United States. Monkeypox was first discovered in the 1950s in monkey colonies researched, according to the CDC, but was also found in squirrels, rats and other animals. The first human case was discovered in 1970.

How do you catch smallpox? Is it comparable to COVID?

Monkey pox is transmitted between humans mainly through contact with infectious wounds, scabies or body fluids, according to the CDC, but can also be spread through prolonged face-to-face contact through respiratory droplets or by touching contaminated clothing or bedding. (Think about the close contact you would have with a sexual partner or the close contact you have with strangers at a busy event or club.) Experts are currently investigating whether monkey pox can be transmitted through semen or vaginal fluid. Anyone can be infected with monkey pox, but many of the cases in the US recently were in men having sex with men, says the CDC. Having close contact with a sexual partner can expose you to monkey pox and the current outbreak is linked to social networking or sexual activity in some communities. “Gay and bisexual communities tend to have a particularly ‘high level of awareness and rapid health-seeking behavior about their sexual health and that of their communities,’” said Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe. statement at the end of May, noting that those seeking timely health services should be applauded. The “short” in close contact is a key element in the transmission of monkey pox. That, along with the fact that the virus that causes monkeypox appears to have a slower rate of reproduction than the COVID-19 virus, sets it apart from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, said Dr. Tom Inglesby, director of the Health Insurance Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told the media in June. While scientists are still learning about monkey pox in newer cases, and some experts deny the idea that it is not airborne, “It does not act like the flu or COVID or chickenpox or measles – things that spread quickly to a non- vaccinated community, “said Inglesby.” It works much more like a disease that requires close contact. ”
“It is not a situation where if you pass someone in a grocery store, they will be at risk of smallpox,” said Dr. Jennifer McQuiston, deputy director of the Division of High Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, in a May briefing. with the CDC. Because many of the recent cases of monkey pox in Europe have resulted in genital lesions resembling symptoms of sexually transmitted infections such as herpes, you should ask to be evaluated if you have an unexplained rash in your genital area. . John Brooks, an epidemiologist in the field of HIV / AIDS prevention, told a CDC briefing in May.

What are the symptoms of monkey pox?

The symptoms of aphids in humans are similar (but milder) to those that the WHO declared extinct in 1980. A smallpox infection usually starts with flu-like symptoms, such as fatigue, severe headache, fever, and swollen lymph nodes. Within one to three days of developing a fever, according to the CDC, rashes or sores develop and can be found almost anywhere on the body, including the hands, genitals, face, chest and inside of the mouth. But wherever they develop, the monkey pox rash or lesions may be flat or elevated, full of clear or yellowish liquid and will eventually dry out and fall off. You can spread monkey pox until the wounds have healed and a new layer of skin has formed, according to the CDC. The illness usually lasts two to four weeks. The incubation period ranges from five to 21 days, according to the CDC. In particular, some people never show flu-like symptoms, says the CDC, and may experience all or just some of the typical symptoms of monkey pox. For safer sex and social gatherings where you can be in close contact with other people’s bodies, the CDC has a practice newsletter to consider. Importantly, Adalja said, “Monkey pox is not contagious during the incubation period, so it does not have this ability to spread as well as certain viruses such as the flu or SARS-CoV-2.” Experts are currently studying whether this is still true in this epidemic. Monkey pox lesions progress through a series of stages before the crust, according to the CDC. While the rash traditionally starts on the face before it becomes more common, monkey pox spots can be limited, look like a pimple or other sore and are not necessarily accompanied by flu symptoms.
Getty Images

Is there a vaccine for monkey pox?

Yes. The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Jynneos for smallpox and smallpox prevention. Because monkey pox is so closely linked to smallpox, smallpox vaccines are also effective against monkey pox. In addition to Jynneos, the US has another smallpox vaccine in stock, called ACAM2000. Because ACAM2000 is an older generation of vaccine with more severe side effects, it is not recommended for everyone, including those who are pregnant or immunocompromised. Γυνναίος …