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At least 780 cases of smallpox have been identified in more than two dozen countries, the World Health Organization said this weekend.
While health officials have stressed that they do not expect the outbreak to turn into a pandemic, the WHO said on Saturday that it is “very likely” that more countries will see cases appear in the coming days and weeks.
“While the current risk to human health and the general public remains low, the risk to public health could be high if the virus seizes the opportunity to establish itself in non-endemic countries. as a widespread human pathogen, “the WHO said in an update on the outbreak.
This graph from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the symptoms of monkeypox in a patient’s hand. (CDC / Getty Images)
The UK, where the first infection was discovered on May 6, has the most cases with 207 confirmed, according to the WHO.
Spain and Portugal are the second and third most cases with 156 and 138 infections respectively.
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Massachusetts was the first U.S. state to report a case of monkeypox on May 18 to a person who had recently traveled to Canada.
Several other states, from California to New York, have also reported cases in recent weeks.
This graph from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the symptoms of smallpox. (CDC / Getty Images)
Jennifer McQuiston, head of the CDC’s smallpox response team, said more analysis of recent cases in the U.S. will be needed to determine the prevalence of the virus.
“I think it’s certainly possible that there have been cases of smallpox in monkeys in the United States that haven’t been on the radar before, but not to a large extent,” McQuiston said Friday.
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Monkeypox, which belongs to it genus of virus like smallpox, it is endemic to several countries in West and Central Africa.
In this photo provided by the Electron Microscopy Unit of the ISCIII in Madrid, where Thursday May 26, 2022, electron microscope image shows the monkeypox virus. (ISCIII Electron Microscopy Unit, via AP)
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The virus has smallpox-like symptoms, including headache, fever, and exhaustion, followed by a rash that turns into blisters.
Smallpox smallpox is spread by direct skin-to-skin contact or by contact with contaminated materials, but can also be transmitted through aerosols when individuals are nearby for an extended period of time.