The number of confirmed cases of smallpox in the UK has risen to 71, after 14 more infections were identified in England.
Although more cases have been detected, the risk to the general population remains low, said the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), although scientists are concerned about the prospect of the virus spreading. ‘spread to animals and pets, which could become a permanent reservoir for the virus. infection.
To date, no cases have been identified in Wales and Northern Ireland. An infection has been detected in Scotland, while 70 have now been reported throughout England.
The UKHSA said a significant proportion of the cases identified so far have occurred between gay and bisexual people, adding that these groups should be alert to new eruptions or injuries that form on any part of their body.
Dr Susan Hopkins, UKHSA’s Chief Medical Adviser, said: they show symptoms “.
Those suspected of having symptoms may be encouraged to limit their contact with other people and call 111 or visit the local sexual health service “as soon as possible.”
People who come in contact with infected people are offered a vaccine that is usually used to protect against smallpox, which is caused by a similar virus.
This strategy, known as ring vaccination, includes health care workers, sex partners, and housemates. High-risk contacts are also asked to be isolated at home for three weeks, as the virus has a long incubation time and symptoms can take several weeks to appear.
Nearly 20 countries where monkeypox is not endemic have reported outbreaks of the disease, with more than 130 confirmed or suspected infections detected, most in Europe.
The World Health Organization has described the sudden rise in cases as “atypical”, but said the outbreak remains “contained” and limited. The fact that cases are being seen in so many different countries suggests that the infection may have been silent for some time, the agency said.
Smallpox is commonly found in West Africa and the virus does not tend to spread easily among people. The disease is usually mild and those who are infected with the virus usually recover in a matter of weeks.
Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, swollen lymph nodes, chills, and exhaustion. A rash can develop, often starting on the face, which then spreads to other parts of the body, including the genitals.
The first case identified in the UK was in a person who had returned from Nigeria, but other cases are not related to travel.
Sir Jeremy Farrar, the director of the Wellcome Trust, said that “we have never seen anything like this before, with so many cases” in so many countries.
Speaking on Monday, he told BBC Radio 4’s Today program that there had been small outbreaks in the past, with cases registered in the UK, but “this is different, something has changed” and suggested that the broadcast events they could be responsible.
“The virus may have changed, but I think it’s unlikely,” said Sir Jeremy. “Most likely, I think the niche in which this virus is now has allowed for some over-the-counter events and those individuals involved who have then traveled to other parts of the world and carried the infection with them.”
Similarly, a prominent WHO adviser described the outbreak of cases as “a random event” that could be explained by two recent mass events in Europe.
Dr. David Heymann, who previously headed the WHO emergency department, said the main theory behind the spread of the disease was sexual transmission and the close contact it entails.
“We know that monkeypox can spread when there is close contact with an injured person’s lesions, and it seems that sexual contact has now amplified this transmission,” Dr. Heymann said.
This marks a significant deviation from the typical pattern of the spread of the disease in Central and West Africa, where people are mainly infected by animals such as rodents and wild primates and outbreaks have not spread across borders.
Up to 10 percent of infections can be fatal in the disease, but no deaths have been reported among current cases.
As health officials rush to understand and contain the ongoing outbreak, the European Center for Disease Control warned that it was important to “manage exposed pets and prevent the disease from spreading to wildlife.”
“If human-to-animal transmission occurs and the virus spreads to an animal population, there is a risk that the disease will become endemic in Europe,” the agency said.
Scientists have pointed out that it will be difficult to unravel whether it is the sex itself or the close sex-related contact that has driven the recent spread of monkeypox in Europe.
“By nature, sexual activity involves intimate contact, which would be expected to increase the likelihood of transmission, regardless of a person’s sexual orientation and regardless of the mode of transmission,” said Mike Skinner, a virologist. of Imperial College London.
The French health authority said on Tuesday that it has recommended launching a vaccination campaign aimed at combating the smallpox outbreak of the monkey, while Moderna is testing possible vaccines against the disease.