New research shows that the viral outbreak occurring almost exclusively among men who have sex with men is likely caused by men having sex with men.
Three new studies, each published in the past month, conclude that evidence suggests that monkeypox is spread primarily through sex between men, not through skin-to-skin contact that occurs during sex. Many experts and health agencies previously advised that monkeypox was spread largely through skin-to-skin contact, which did not necessarily have to occur in a sexual context.
The MONKEYPOX outbreak appears to be 95-99% among gay men, so it’s good to be very clear, which will direct resources to the community most affected and help contain it. Thanks
— Monica Gandhi MD, MPH (@MonicaGandhi9) August 19, 2022
“A growing body of evidence supports that sexual transmission, particularly through seminal fluids, is occurring with the current outbreak of MPX,” Dr. Aniruddha Hazra, medical director of the Wellness Clinic, told NBC News Sexual from the University of Chicago.
“It seems very clear to us that this is a sexually transmitted infection the vast majority of the time,” Brigham and Women’s Hospital Global Health Resident Physician Lao-Tzu Allan-Blitz said, according to NBC News.
University of Southern California infectious disease physician Jeffrey Klausner, who has submitted an essay to scientific journals for publication with Allan-Blitz reviewing the evidence that monkeypox is an STD, said there a variety of evidence points to the virus being sexually transmitted beyond simple correlation. with gay men
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), three-quarters of monkeypox cases occur in men between the ages of 18 and 44, which is consistent with the normal age distribution for transmissible infections. sexual, Klausner told NBC. Most of the lesions on the patients’ bodies were also found in the oral and anal regions, a sign of sexual transmission, he said. Researchers have also found the virus in semen.
The evidence does not mean that women or heterosexuals cannot be infected with monkeypox, but it does explain why the vast majority of cases have been in men who have sex with other men. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 94% of cases are in men who have sex with men and 99% of cases are in men in general.
Some health experts have warned gay and bisexual men not to have multiple or anonymous partners given the increased risk the behavior poses. The WHO has issued an official recommendation that men do not have sex with anonymous partners or with a large number of partners to protect themselves from an increased risk of monkeypox infection. (RELATED: Man’s Nose Rots After Smallpox, Syphilis, HIV)
However, the CDC has made no such recommendation, nor has it directed its message about monkeypox to treat it as an STD. The agency continues to warn that monkeypox is spread through close skin-to-skin contact despite mounting evidence to the contrary. Some experts have said public health officials are hesitant to treat the virus as an STD for gay men because of the stigma it can carry in the LGBT community.