Local transmission of monkeypox affirmed by the U.S.CDC

WHO also needs clear case definitions to help identify and report infections.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Thursday that there is confirmation of local transmission of monkeypox, as well as cases reported among people who have traveled abroad. According to a report by Reuters, the cases are mainly occurring in men who engage in sexual relations with other men, but women are also getting infected. The lesions associated with the present monkeypox outbreak are also smaller than those typically seen in cases of classic monkeypox. The WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the spread of the disease, both in non-endemic and endemic countries, “cannot be ignored.” He called for contact tracing, laboratory investigation, genome sequencing, and control measures. WHO also needs clear case definitions to help identify and report infections.

As per the WHO, most reported cases in the outbreak had been transmitted through sexual health or other health services in primary or secondary health care facilities, with a history of travel primarily to countries in Europe, North America, or other countries. On Wednesday, the World Health Network (WHN) announced that they are declaring the current monkeypox outbreak a pandemic, given that there are now 3,417 confirmed monkeypox cases reported across 58 countries, and the outbreak is rapidly expanding across multiple continents.