Monkeypox cases have tripled in Europe in the past two weeks, the World Health Organization (WHO) says, as it urges countries in the region to do more to ensure the previously rare disease does not become entrenched on the continent.
Most important points:
- African health authorities call on rich countries to share limited supplies of vaccines
- WHO says supply of vaccine made by Bavarian Nordic is extremely limited
- In the UK, the disease is largely spreading among gay men, UK health authorities say
In Africa, health authorities said they viewed the growing outbreak as an emergency and called on rich countries to share limited supplies of vaccines to avoid equity problems during the COVID-19 pandemic.
WHO Europe chief Hans Kluge said Friday (local time) more efforts were needed, despite the UN health organization’s decision last week that the escalating outbreak had not yet warranted declaring it a global health emergency.
“Urgent and concerted action is necessary if we are to turn a corner in the race to reverse the ongoing spread of this disease,” said Dr. kluge.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 5,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported to date from 51 countries around the world that normally do not report the disease.
dr. Kluge said the number of infections in Europe represented about 90 percent of the global total, with 31 countries in the WHO’s European region having identified cases.
Scramble for vaccines is leaving Africa behind
dr. Kluge also said that purchasing vaccines “must apply the principles of justice.”
The main vaccine used against monkeypox was originally developed for smallpox and the European Medicines Agency said this week it was beginning to evaluate whether it should be approved for monkeypox.
The WHO has said that the supply of the vaccine, made by Bavarian Nordic, was extremely limited.
Countries, including the UK and Germany, have already started vaccinating people at high risk for monkey pox; the UK has recently expanded its vaccination program to mainly gay and bisexual men who have multiple sexual partners and are believed to be the most vulnerable.
Until May, monkeypox was never known to cause major outbreaks outside parts of central and western Africa, where it had been infecting humans for decades, was endemic to several countries and usually caused limited outbreaks as it jumped from infected wildlife to humans.
To date, there have been about 1,800 suspected cases of monkey pox in Africa, including more than 70 deaths, but only 109 have been confirmed in the lab.
The lack of laboratory diagnosis and weak supervision means that many cases go undetected.
“This particular outbreak represents an emergency for us,” said Ahmed Ogwell, the acting director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control.
The WHO says monkeypox has spread to African countries where it has not been seen before, including South Africa, Ghana and Morocco.
Vaccines have never been used to stop monkeypox outbreaks in Africa, with officials relying mainly on contact tracing and isolation.
The WHO noted that, similar to last year’s battle for COVID-19 vaccines, countries with monkeypox vaccines were not yet sharing them with Africa.
“We have no donations that have been offered to [poorer] countries,” said Fiona Braka, head of the WHO emergency response team in Africa.
“We know that those countries that have some supplies reserve them mainly for their own populations.”
Spread of disease among gay men in UK
dr. Kluge said data reported to the WHO showed that 99 percent of the cases were in men — the majority in men who have sex with men.
But he said there were now “small numbers” of cases among household contacts, including children.
dr. Kluge said the problem of stigma in some countries could make some people wary of seeking health care and said WHO was working with partners, including organizers of gay pride events.
In the UK, which has the largest monkeypox outbreak outside of Africa, officials noted that the disease spread in “defined sexual networks of homosexuals, bisexuals or men who have sex with men”.
UK health authorities said there were no signs of continued transmission outside those populations.
Ahead of gay pride events in the UK this weekend, London’s top public health doctor asked people with monkey pox symptoms, such as swollen glands or blisters, to stay at home.
Nevertheless, in Africa, the WHO says that, according to detailed data from Ghana, monkey pox cases were almost equally distributed between men and women, and no spread was found among men who have sex with men.
People with monkeypox often experience symptoms such as rash, fever, fatigue, muscle aches, vomiting, and chills. Most recover within weeks without needing medical attention.
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