Monkeypox virus outbreak

Rest of World News: The Covid pandemic isn't over yet, and there are already reports of another viral infection - monkeypox - fast spreading in Europe.

It may lead to a range of medical complications. "Monkeypox is Zoonotic, such viruses spread in animals, but take a jump to humans. We need to study how it is evolving, and how many people are getting affected. And we should keep a guard but at the same time, there is no need to panic. A health expert in Pune has said there is no need to panic, and insisted on observing the evolution of the disease. "The virus is endemic in some animal populations in a number of countries, leading to occasional outbreaks among local people and travelers," it added in its statement.

Monkeypox News Highlights: WHO has said that it is expecting more cases of Monkeypox as surveillance expands to non-endemic countries.

(Reuters) The World Health Organization said it expects to identify more cases of monkeypox as it expands surveillance in countries where the disease is not typically found. The case is a man in his 30s who had returned from a trip in western Europe, according to the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center – Ichilov, where he is quarantined and in mild condition. The case is a man in his 30s who had returned from a trip in western Europe, according to the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center – Ichilov, where he is quarantined and in mild condition. The monkeypox outbreak is something “everybody should be concerned about,” U.S. President Joe Biden said on Sunday, adding that U.S. health officials are looking into possible treatments and vaccines. Switzerland has detected its first confirmed case of monkeypox, a person in the canton of Bern who contracted it through “close physical contact abroad”, the canton said in a statement on Saturday. The person consulted a doctor because they had a fever and a rash and felt poorly, the canton said, adding that the person was in isolation at home and the illness was developing in a “benign” way. US President Joe Biden said Sunday that recent cases of monkeypox that have been identified in Europe and the United States were something “to be concerned about.'' In his first public comments on the disease, Biden added: “It is a concern in that if it were to spread it would be consequential.“ The president was asked about the disease as he spoke to reporters at Osan Air Base in South Korea, where he visited troops before taking off for Japan to continue his first trip to Asia as president. The Union Health Ministry has also directed airport and port health officers to be vigilant. The patient had symptoms typical of the illness, including a slight fever and pustules on his face, ORF said, adding that tests should determine whether it is in fact Monkeypox by Sunday night. Austria's first suspected case of Monkeypox has been reported in Vienna, a 35-year-old man who was taken to hospital overnight, national broadcaster ORF said on Sunday, citing a spokesman for the city's top health official. Monkeypox spreads differently from COVID-19. There has not been a single case of Monkeypox in India as of now but the gradual rise and spread of the virus across countries has triggered fear amongst masses. These countries are Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, UK and US. WHO has said that it is expecting more cases of Monkeypox as surveillance expands to non-endemic countries.

Close contacts of those infected with rare disease offered vaccines and told to isolate for up to 21 days.

“I think it’s possible that some of these outbreaks will be driven by superspreading events,” said Dr Michael Head, a senior research fellow in global health at Southampton University. “For example, the Spanish health authorities are looking at a sauna as a site of single exposure that resulted in many secondary cases. The same studies suggest that a Belgian man contracted the virus on a recent trip to Portugal. Superspreader events may have boosted the outbreak since it arrived in Europe. But the virus can cause more serious illness in those with weakened immune systems, pregnant women and young children. While some monkeypox patients have been admitted to hospital, many confirmed cases that do not need specialist care are told to isolate at home until local health protection teams are confident they are no longer infectious. Under UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) guidance, the same high-risk contacts are advised to avoid immunosuppressed people, pregnant women and children under 12, as they are more vulnerable to serious infections.

The UAE's health ministry is “proactively investigating and closely monitoring any suspect cases” of viral zootonic disease monkeypox.

The MoHAP said monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease that occurs primarily in tropical rainforest areas of Central and West Africa and is occasionally exported to other regions. The ministry said it is currently studying and evaluating the seriousness of the disease locally. The UAE’s health ministry is “proactively investigating and closely monitoring any suspect cases” of viral zootonic disease monkeypox.

Explainer - Global health officials have sounded the alarm over rising cases in Europe of monkeypox, a type of viral infection more common to west and ...

Rasmussen said a number of factors including increased global travel as well as climate change have accelerated the emergence and spread of viruses. Scientists are seeking to understand the origin of the current cases and whether anything about the virus has changed. The UK has begun to inoculate healthcare workers who may be at risk while caring for patients with the smallpox vaccine, which can also protect against monkeypox. This doesn't appear to be the case with the monkeypox," said Dr Martin Hirsch of Massachusetts General Hospital. Most people fully recover in two to four weeks, the official said. That should make its spread easier to contain once infections are identified, experts said.

Austrian health authorities declared today the country had recorded its first confirmed case of monkeypox in Vienna, taking the total of countries with ...

Monkeypox was first discovered in 1958, with the first reported human case in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970. Monkeypox is a rare viral infection which kills up to one in ten of those infected but does not spread easily between people. When asked about the risk to Britons going to summer festivals and children on sunshine holidays, chief medical adviser for UKHSA Dr Susan Hopkins said: 'The risk to the general population [from monkeypox] remains extremely low... Early genomic sequencing of a handful of the cases in Europe has suggested a similarity with the strain that spread in a limited fashion in Britain, Israel and Singapore in 2018. The World Health Organisation said it expects to identify more cases of monkeypox as it expands surveillance in countries where the disease is not typically found. Dr Claire Dewsnap, president of the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, warns of a 'significant' rise in infections across the UK in the coming weeks It comes as Dr Hopkins, a chief medical adviser to the UK Health Security Agency, also warned that monkeypox is spreading through community transmission in the UK with more cases being detected daily. Dr Claire Dewsnap, president of the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, has also said the outbreak could have a 'massive impact' on access to sexual health services in Britain. The infections, the first of which was recorded on Friday, are all linked to a festival in the port city of Antwerp. Dr Susan Hopkins, a chief medical adviser to the UK Health Security Agency, today also warned that monkeypox is spreading through community transmission in the UK with more cases being detected daily The Government urged high risk contacts of monkeypox in the UK to self-isolate for three weeks as cases rise across Britain British holidaymakers have been urged to stay 'alert' to the dangers of monkeypox as the number of cases is set to rise today and the Government is urging high-risk contacts to self-isolate for three weeks.

Cases of monkeypox virus, a rare viral disease typically found in Africa, are being reported in 11 countries, including in the United States and Europe.

The first human case was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo during an intensified effort to eliminate smallpox. People with severe cases can develop rash and lesions on the face, hands and other parts of the body. The virus originates in primates and other wild animals, and causes fever, body aches, chills and fatigue in most patients. No deaths have been reported in the recent European outbreak. Health advisers "haven't told me the level of exposure yet, but it is something that everybody should be concerned about", Biden said from South Korea, where he is on an official visit. Globally, 127 cases have been reported in 11 countries, according to John Brownstein, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, who is keeping track of cases.

Britain is seeing daily infections of the rare monkeypox virus that are unconnected to any travel to West Africa, where the disease is endemic, ...

Hopkins declined to confirm reports that one individual was in intensive care, but said the outbreak was concentrated in urban areas, among gay or bisexual men. "We are detecting more cases on a daily basis." Asked if community transmission was now the norm in Britain, UKHSA chief medical adviser Susan Hopkins said "absolutely".

Those who contract the virus will now have to self-isolate for three weeks, Belgian health authorities have said, after three cases were recorded in the ...

Monkeypox was first discovered in 1958, with the first reported human case in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970. Early genomic sequencing of a handful of the cases in Europe has suggested a similarity with the strain that spread in a limited fashion in Britain, Israel and Singapore in 2018. 'We are detecting more cases on a daily basis and I'd like to thank all of those people who are coming forward for testing to sexual health clinics, to the GPs and emergency department." As of Saturday, 92 confirmed cases and 28 suspected cases of monkeypox have been reported from 12 member states that are not endemic for the virus, the UN agency said, adding it will provide further guidance and recommendations in coming days for countries on how to mitigate the spread of monkeypox. 'We are detecting more cases on a daily basis and I'd like to thank all of those people who are coming forward for testing to sexual health clinics, to the GPs and emergency department." The World Health Organisation said it expects to identify more cases of monkeypox as it expands surveillance in countries where the disease is not typically found. Human cases were recorded for the first time in the US in 2003 and the UK in September 2018. Dr Claire Dewsnap, president of the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, warns of a 'significant' rise in infections across the UK in the coming weeks One of the first known cases of the monkeypox virus are shown on a patient's hand on June 5, 2003, via a picture released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Dr Claire Dewsnap, president of the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, has also said the outbreak could have a 'massive impact' on access to sexual health services in Britain. The infections, the first of which was recorded on Friday, are all linked to a festival in the port city of Antwerp. Belgium has become the first country to introduce a compulsory 21-day monkeypox quarantine - as 14 countries now confirm outbreaks o f the viral disease and doctors warn of a 'significant rise' in UK cases

Belgium has become the first country in the world to announce a compulsory monkeypox quarantine as cases continue to spread rapidly. Under the new rules,

- news.com.au, - Publish Date - Author - news.com.au, - Publish Date - Author

Monkeypox is a disease in the same family as smallpox and symptoms include a distinct bumpy rash, a fever, sore muscles and a headache. Monkeypox is less deadly ...

On Saturday, the World Health Organization reported that there were 92 confirmed cases in 12 different countries, with 28 suspected cases under investigation. Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said the government was taking it “very, very seriously.” Monkeypox is less deadly than smallpox, with a mortality rate below 4 percent, but experts are worried about the unusual spread of the disease beyond Africa where it usually circulates.

In its latest update, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported 92 confirmed cases and 28 suspected cases of monkeypox in the past few weeks in countries ...

Now people younger than 40 to 50 (depending on the country) may be more susceptible to it, because smallpox vaccination campaigns had stopped after the disease was eradicated. The name monkeypox originated from the initial discovery of the virus in monkeys in a Danish laboratory in 1958. In contrast, from the little known about monkeypox, the lesions were painful. It would be providing more technical recommendations in coming days. The problem is that monkeypox gives you exactly the same presentation.” Lesions start as a macular rash that develops into papules, vesicles, then pustules, which crust and fall off. All cases confirmed by PCR in the current outbreak had been identified as the West African clade. Monkeypox virus was transmitted from one person to another by close contact with lesions, body fluids, respiratory droplets and contaminated materials such as bedding. So inadvertent transmission is less likely.” In the absence of a major genomic change, or a major shift in the rate at which monkeypox spread, it was unlikely to cause a major outbreak. Even kissing could cause transmission through saliva. Some people died from it.

Monkeypox is not a “repeat of” Covid-19, a UK government minister has assured. “As with any new disease, and obviously after the Covid pandemic doubly so, we ...

Jake Sullivan, the president’s national security adviser, told reporters aboard the flight to Tokyo that the US has a supply of “vaccine that is relevant to treating monkeypox.” Australia has at least two cases of monkeypox after the cases were detected in people returning from abroad. The outbreak is now said to be the “largest and most widespread ever seen in Europe” where a dozen of countries have reported cases. It has at least five cases of the virus. The person has been isolated and contact tracing is being conducted. It called on anyone returning from abroad with fever and lesions to see a doctor. The total tally in Spain reached 30 after 23 cases were confirmed in a single day. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. He added that work was underway to determine what vaccine might be effective. A sauna in Madrid has been linked to a majority of cases which has been closed. The WHO list did not include Israel, Switzerland and Austria, which have since confirmed their own cases. The head of the World Health Organisation has described monkeypox as a new “formidable” challenge to the global community alongside the Covid-19 pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine, as the agency warned of rising cases of the virus.

It is unlikely New Zealand will be hit with a large outbreak of monkeypox, especially if its genome sequence hasn't changed since it was first discovered, ...

"It's far less transmissible than something like Covid-19" Professor Michael Baker "It's far less transmissible than something like Covid-19" Professor Michael Baker duration 4:43 "It's far less transmissible than something like Covid-19" Professor Michael Baker It's unusual to have very large outbreaks." "It's far less transmissible than something like Covid-19" Professor Michael Baker duration 4:43 "It's far less transmissible than something like Covid-19 and the outcome is not particularly severe with this infection."

Associate Professor of epidemiology Arindam Basu told Newstalk ZB's Kate Hawkesby this morning that although there are no recorded or suspected cases in New ...

The majority of people recover from monkeypox within a few weeks. Professor Basu says people aged 20–50 seem to be at higher risk, as are men who have sex with men. "Rather than people panic it's important to say it's a problem, we should watch it but it's not going to kill people in the same way Covid has." Although it's unclear why the disease is spreading now, there's little to indicate it has mutated in any meaningful way - instead, it's possible the conditions have just been perfect for it to thrive. With monkeypox now in 15 countries, a leading epidemiologist says it's "too soon to tell" if the virus is in New Zealand. The World Health Organisation says this outbreak is unusual, as it is occurring in non-endemic countries,with very few links back to where it is usually found.

Nearly 100 cases of Monkeypox have been reported in several parts of the world, a disease that has largely remained confined to Africa.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has recommended all suspected cases be isolated and that high-risk contacts be offered the smallpox vaccine. The main difference between symptoms of smallpox and monkeypox is that monkeypox causes lymph nodes to swell (lymphadenopathy) while smallpox does not, the CDC notes. Meanwhile, British health officials are exploring whether the disease is being sexually transmitted. Most human cases have been in central and west Africa, where the disease is endemic. They haven’t told me the level of exposure yet but it is something that everybody should be concerned about," the President said when asked about the disease. France, Germany, Belgium, and Australia reported their first cases on Friday. To date, no one has died in the outbreak.

Monkeypox can be spread through close contact with an infected person or their clothing or bedsheets, but sexual transmission has not yet been documented.

“It’s very possible there was somebody who got infected, developed lesions on the genitals, hands or somewhere else, and then spread it to others when there was sexual or close, physical contact,” Heymann hypothesized. “This is not COVID,” he said. Monkeypox typically causes fever, chills, rash, and lesions on the face or genitals. Madrid’s senior health official said on Monday that the Spanish capital has recorded 30 confirmed cases so far. WHO said confirmed cases have so far been the less severe West African group of monkeypox viruses and appeared to be linked to a virus that was first detected in exported cases from Nigeria to Britain, Israel and Singapore in 2018-2019. U.K. officials have said “a notable proportion” of the cases in Britain and Europe have been in young men with no history of travel to Africa and who are gay, bisexual or have sex with men.

Belgium introduced the world's first compulsory monkeypox quarantine rules last week.

There are two strains of the virus. Portugal, Spain and the U.K. have the highest number of confirmed cases so far, each having reported between 21 and 30 confirmed cases to the WHO. To date, the U.K. has confirmed 20 cases of monkeypox, with health officials expected to announce more confirmed cases on Monday. Most countries have said people with confirmed cases of monkeypox should isolate for 21 days, with the U.S. CDC advising monkeypox patients to isolate until all crusts from the rash are gone. No one in the U.K. with a confirmed or potential case of monkeypox is required to self-isolate by law. Health officials in the U.K. and Belgium have introduced three-week quarantines to prevent the transmission of monkeypox, as the disease continues to spread across Europe.

The individual is said to be receiving care and treatment appropriate to their condition.

Close contacts of the case are being identified and provided with health information and advice. The affected individual is being managed and treated in line with nationally agreed protocols and guidance. “We are working with NHS Boards and wider partners in Scotland and the UK to investigate the source of this infection.

Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by the monkeypox virus. It is a member of the same genus, including the variola virus causing smallpox, the Orthopoxvirus ...

The team used a QIAamp DNA blood kit and extracted DNA from the skin exudate. In the current study, researchers determined the genomic sequence of the monkeypox virus from an infected Portuguese male. The enveloped monkeypox virus is a double-stranded (ds) deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) virus with different rodents and non-human primates as hosts.

Why it matters: Many cases in the growing monkeypox outbreak have been found in people with no travel links to places where it typically circulates. Health ...

- But Daniel Bausch, an infectious disease expert and president of the American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene,told Axioslast week: "I don't think there's a reason for panic. - Transmission can come from animals or human-to-human but "it is generally documented among very close contacts. Health officials have so far detected cases in much of Europe, the U.S., Canada and Australia. - The program said that lessons "from the AIDS response show that stigma and blame directed at certain groups of people can rapidly undermine outbreak response." - Doctors should suspect monkeypox if patients have a rash after they've traveled to countries with confirmed cases, or if a patient has reported having contact with someone who has been to one of those countries, the CDC said in ahealth alert. - On Sunday, the CDC and Florida health officials said they wereinvestigating a presumptive casein Broward County, one of the state's largest counties.

The first draft genome sequence of monkeypox virus, taken from a swab of a confirmed case of the current outbreak, was sequenced and released online.

Indeed, the West African clade has now been confirmed in at least six of the cases in the recent outbreak.There are two clades of monkeypox virus: the West African clade and the Congo Basin (Central African) clade. The paper posted on www.virological.org is the first draft genome sequence of the monkeypox virus associated with the major outbreak affecting multiple countries worldwide. The West African clade of monkeypox virus infection—which has a lower case fatality ratio (roughly 1%) than the Congo Basin clade (up to 10%)—can lead to severe illness in some individuals. Monkeypox virus is an enveloped double‐stranded DNA virus with a genome size of around 190 kb. The first draft sequence of SARS-CoV-2 was made available in a similar fashion. On May 19, a research group led by João Paulo Gomes, PhD, a researcher from the department of infectious diseases, National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA), in Lisbon, Portugal, posted the sequence online on virological.org.

European nations have confirmed dozens of cases in what's become the largest outbreak of monkeypox ever on the Continent, according to the German military.

The U.S. has confirmed at least two cases and Canada has confirmed at least five so far. The vaccine used to prevent smallpox appears to be about 85% effective in guarding against monkeypox in observational research in Africa, WHO officials said. That then progresses to a rash on the face, hands, feet, eyes, mouth or genitals that turns into raised bumps, or papules, that then become blisters that often resemble chicken pox. The WHO convened an emergency meeting this weekend via video conference to look at the virus, identify those most at risk and study its transmission. Two confirmed and one suspected case of monkeypox in the U.K. were reported to the WHO just 10 days ago, the first cases this year outside of Africa where the virus has generally circulated at low levels over the last 40 years, the organization said. European nations have confirmed dozens of cases in what's become the largest outbreak of monkeypox ever on the Continent, according to the German military.

Dr David Heymann, who chairs a World Health Organisation expert group, has described the unprecedented outbreak in Europe as "a random event" that might have ...

- Sweden - 1-5 confirmed - Germany - 1-5 confirmed - Australia - 1-5 confirmed It is offering the jab to very close contacts of those who have been affected. So why the concern? Read more: What do we know about the UK's biggest-ever outbreak of monkeypox?

Monkeypox: How does it spread? Where was the first US case? Is it airborne? Does smallpox vaccine offer protection? Here are the answers to the questions...

See more information from the travel notice here. Monkeypox also causes lymph nodes to swell, something that smallpox does not. It presents itself as a flu-like illness accompanied by lymph-node swelling and rash on the face and body. Monkeypox starts off with fever, headache, muscle aches, and exhaustion. Other African countries where it has been found: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone. Monkeypox is rarely identified outside of Africa, but as of Friday, there were 80 confirmed cases worldwide, including at least two in the United States, and another 50 suspected ones. Biden added that work was underway to determine which vaccine might be effective. Most potential cases the CDC is investigating do not involve recent travel to countries that typically see a lot of monkeypox, so it says it is working diligently to track the connections. One of the latter is being treated in isolation in New York City. - Person of Interest Identified in Deadly NYC ... Most people who become infected recover within two to four weeks with little or no intervention. The agency is responsible for confirming potential cases as state and city health departments sent samples.

As of May 23, four times as many countries outside of Africa have reported monkeypox this month than have in the previous 50 years.

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Epidemiologist Dr Anne Rimoin says it's normal to see new viruses appear in places that we haven't seen before.

Most human cases have been in central and west Africa, where the disease is endemic. No cases of the disease have identified in New Zealand yet, but worldwide around 92 cases have been detected, including in Australia. "The smallpox vaccines, which were developed for smallpox which resulted in the eradication of smallpox are about 85% effective for monkeypox," Krause said

The World Health Organization does not have evidence that the monkeypox virus has mutated, a senior executive at the U.N. agency said on Monday, noting the ...

This will become clearer in the weeks and days to come," Seale said. Scientists are seeking to understand the origin of the cases and whether anything about the virus has changed. The outbreaks are atypical, according to the WHO, occurring in countries where the virus does not regularly circulate. "This is a containable situation," particularly in Europe, she said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com

Belgium has become the first country to introduce a 21-day quarantine for monkeypox patients as cases spread across the globe.

He was speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where political and business leaders have gathered this week to key global issues, including pandemic preparedness. "This is evolutionarily certain that we're going to see more outbreaks," he said. But it's likely that we're going to see more cases," he said. The U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Belgium, Portugal and Netherlands have all confirmed cases. Belgium's compulsory measures apply only to patients with a confirmed infection. As of Monday, the country has recorded four local cases; confirmed global infections currently number around 100.