Global Monkeypox Threat Upgraded

Monkeypox’s threat to the world has been upgraded to ‘moderate’ by global health chiefs, as the tropical virus spreads to dozens of countries.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said the explosion of cases has become more worrying because it is the first time clusters have been reported simultaneously in different places and without any known links to Africa, where the virus is endemic.

So far the outbreak, which was first detected in early May, has spread to 24 countries and been diagnosed in 106 Britons, the majority of whom are men who have sex with men. The WHO said the figures are ‘likely to be an underestimate’.

There are growing concerns the virus will spill into wild animals and never be eradicated. That would also raise the risk of monkeypox mutating.

The WHO said public health risk from the virus ‘could become high’ if it spreads to more vulnerable groups who are at higher risk of becoming very unwell, including young children and immunosuppressed people.

The ‘sudden appearance’ and ‘wide geographic scope’ of cases suggests widespread human transmission of the virus — which spreads through skin-to-skin contact and an infected persons’ droplets — is underway, the WHO said.

WHO chiefs also warned the surge in monkeypox infections suggests the virus ‘may have been circulating unrecognised for several weeks or longer’.

UK health chiefs have warned that music festivals could be monkeypox super-spread events this summer, including at the two-day Mighty Hoopla event in London because it will ‘attract a lot of queer people’.

It comes as the UK Government’s scientific advisers warned that pet hamsters, rabbits and other rodents owned by infected patients should be isolated for three weeks.

The Human Animal Infections and Risk Surveillance (HAIRS) group said these animals were at the highest risk of catching the virus, and they could spread it into wild populations.

Experts fear that if the virus is unleashed into wild animal populations then it will become endemic and be hard to eradicate, as is the case in parts of western and central Africa.

In a risk assessment published yesterday, the WHO warned that its ‘moderate’ grading could be pushed to ‘high’ if the virus ‘exploits the opportunity to establish itself as a human pathogen’ and spreads to vulnerable groups.

Reported cases have so far been mild but there is a risk the virus has a ‘greater health impact’ if it spreads to at-risk people, including children and immunocompromised people, such as some HIV patients, who ‘may be especially at risk of more severe disease’.

The WHO warned there is a ‘high risk’ of further spread of the virus though skin-to-skin contact between families and sexual partners, as well as due to contact with contaminated materials, such as utensils, bedding and clothing.

‘However, at present, the risk for the general public appears to be low,’ the agency said.

It cautioned that a ‘large part’ of the population is vulnerable to monkeypox due to the discontinuation of the smallpox vaccination scheme.

In the UK, youngsters were routinely offered this jab until four decades ago, around the point at which the virus was eradicated. Because smallpox and monkeypox are so similar, those who received the jab, who are now at least in their fifties, are thought to have some immunity against the circulating strain.

There is a ‘potential risk’ to health workers who treat someone infected with the virus if they are not wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) to prevent transmission.

No monkeypox cases have been logged among medics in the current outbreak, the WHO said. But an NHS worker became infected in 2018 after treating someone infected with the virus.

In its report, the WHO also warned that people who have recently had multiple sexual partners — either where they live or abroad — ‘may be at risk’ of having monkeypox.

It said health chiefs should reach out to at risk communities, which ‘at the present time’ includes men who have sex with men and their close contacts.

The WHO said it ‘would be prudent’ for people to limit the number of sexual partners they have during the early stage of this outbreak.

It comes as Dr Will Nutland, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, warned that festivals could fuel the spread of the virus.

The outbreaks have been traced to a gay sauna in Madrid, a Gran Canaria pride festival attended by 80,000 people and Darklands – a large-scale fetish festival in Belgium.

Dr Nutland hosted a webinar for the LGBTQ+ community about the risks of monkeypox, as part of his roles as co-founder of Prepster, a volunteer group of HIV prevention activists in London.

The doctor warned that it could spread at the Mighty Hoopla in Brockwell Park, south London, on Friday and Saturday.

He told the Sunday Telegraph that the pop festival is ‘going to attract a lot of queer people’.

A spokesperson for the Mighty Hoopla said that they ‘remain committed to working in line with government health guidance regarding public safety at events’.

Earlier this month, Dr Hans Kluge, regional director for Europe at the World Health Organisation, said he is concerned about ‘mass gatherings, festivals and parties’, which could accelerate transmissions.

He said that the cases being identified are ‘among those engaging in sexual activity’, and creates unfamiliar symptoms.

Mateo Prochazka, epidemiologist from the UKHSA, said that it is important people do not assume monkeypox is only a threat to the LGBTQ+ community

He told the BBC that it can spread to anyone through close contact — including contact with items used by someone infected, such as cutlery or their clothes.

So far 24 countries have confirmed monkeypox cases, with Spain, the UK and Portugal logging the most infections.

Sylvie Briand, head of epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention at the WHO, last week warned the reported infections may be just the ‘peak of the iceberg’ and ‘many more cases’ could be going undetected.

In its report, the WHO said it is ‘highly likely’ that even more countries will identify infections.

But is said nations should not adopt any travel-related restrictions, like those brought in during the Covid pandemic, ‘based on available information at this time’.

In the UK, 106 cases have been detected. More than 100 of the infections have been logged in England, while Scotland has spotted three and Northern Ireland and Wales have detected one each.

Teams from the UK Health Security Agency are contacting high-risk contacts of confirmed cases and advising them to self-isolate at home for three weeks and avoid contact with children.

Both confirmed cases and close contacts are being offered the Imvanex vaccine to form a buffer of immune people around a confirmed case to limit the spread of the disease.

The strategy, known as ring vaccination, has been used in previous monkeypox outbreaks and is also being carried out in some EU countries.

Source: DailyMail