Here’s the overview:
Monkeypox is a disease with symptoms that are similar, but less severe than smallpox. Mpox has been reported for many years in areas of central and west Africa. Mpox has made the news recently with WHO declaring the spread of mpox to be a cause of international concern. Currently, there are no cases of mpox in the United States.
Why don’t we worry about Smallpox anymore?
Smallpox was eradicated in 1980 due to concentrated public health efforts to improve community vaccination uptake.
Let’s dig in a little deeper now:
A bit of background, this is not the first time mpox has been of international concern. In 2022, there was an outbreak of cases was reported and contained in countries outside the African region that had not reported cases before. This outbreak was mostly contained and is declared to have ended. Mpox has made the news again recently with the WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, declaring that the spread of mpox to a new area of Africa (Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC) and a sexually transmitted variant of the disease being present was a cause of international concern. This notice also alerted worldwide health organizations to begin preparing for a potential outbreak. WHO expects an initial investment of around $15M to fund surveillance, preparedness, and response activities for mpox and, hopefully, prevent an outbreak. To allow these efforts to begin immediately, the WHO has released US$ 1.45 million from the WHO Contingency Fund for Emergencies and has begun a needs assessment across the three levels of the Organization to determine the steps needed for additional preparedness.
Mpox is typically found in or near tropical rainforests where animals carry the virus. The mpox virus infections has been found in many types of animals including squirrels, dormice, monkeys, and more. Mpox is able to be spread from animals to humans, making it a type of disease called a zoonosis. Mpox can spread from person to person mainly through close contact with someone who has mpox. Close contact includes skin-to-skin and mouth-to-mouth and can also include being face-to-face with someone with mpox. This includes talking or breathing close to one another, which can generate infectious respiratory particles. During the global outbreak that began in 2022, the virus mostly spread through sexual contact. It’s important to note that people with mpox are considered infectious until all their lesions have crusted over, the scabs have fallen off and a new layer of skin has formed underneath, and all the lesions on the eyes and in the body (in the mouth, throat, eyes, vagina and anus) have healed too, which usually takes from 2 to 4 weeks.
Relating to the US, and if we should worry about mpox in our communities, the CDC has reported that there are no cases of mpox reported in the United States at this time. According to the CDC, the risk of mpox coming into the United States is low due to the limited number of travelers and the lack of direct commercial flights from DRC or its neighboring countries to the United States. However, the risk level could change as more information becomes available, or if more cases appear outside central and eastern Africa.
To avoid getting this disease, avoid being in close contact with someone who has mpox, wash and disinfect hands and surfaces regularly, and consider getting one of the two vaccines against mpox that some countries are recommending for vaccination of persons at risk before traveling to an area with an active outbreak.
Sources/Read More:
https://www.who.int/health-topics/monkeypox#tab=tab_1
https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/mpox/outbreak/2023-drc.html
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/orthopoxvirus
