—–
What do we know about the spread of this disease?
We believe it has been spread by rodents, but we do not know in which species it lives naturally. In Africa, we find the Congolese rope squirrel virus, shrimp rat, dormouse and things like that. People hunt in the woods and bring this meat that needs to be prepared. This is the traditional type of exposure (to the virus). It is also possible for the family to eat undercooked meat. This meat could also be sold in a market, so that even people who have no direct exposure to the forest may be exposed.
But another important factor is that smallpox was eradicated in 1980, so people who were born after 1980, or in certain countries after 1960 or 1970, did not have the opportunity to get vaccinated against the smallpox.
Have you seen monkey pox in the west before?
There were two cases in the UK in 2021 and two in the US, also in 2021. There was also an outbreak in the US in 2003, but it had nothing to do with the current situation. It was very strange. These were prairie dogs that were imported for sale as pets, and the children began to get sick after being scratched or bitten. It took about three months to understand the nature of the outbreak and contain it.
How did the current outbreak start?
We received reports from the UK, once again. She was a traveler who came back from Nigeria and found out she had smallpox from the monkey and I said to myself, “Okay, it’s started.” The UK found an outbreak in one family, and it was completely unexpected because it involved three members of the same family. It was the first time we had seen monkeypox out of Africa in someone who hadn’t traveled recently, so it was new. (The British) later found him in samples from their labs that tested positive and came from men who had sex with other men.
At the same time, Portugal reported an outbreak of people with undiagnosed injuries. They were negative for herpes, negative for syphilis, so the Portuguese were looking for information, and relatively quickly, Portugal and the United Kingdom realized that they were facing the same.
They were men who had sex with men, who had participated in certain events and then returned home.
The first cases were all associated with travel from central Europe. That’s where we are now, except we’re seeing a lot of cases and it’s spreading in this group of people who have frequent physical contact with more than one person, possibly in a very short period of time, so the conditions are right. . for fast transmission and propagation.
Is there, then, an opportunity to act that should not be missed?
Yes, and it is essential to take advantage (this time) before the virus affects a more general population, relatives, children, vulnerable people, for example, HIV-positive people. But we cannot be alarmists. The vast majority of cases are still being reported in this group, so this is where the transmission is taking place, it is not too late to stop the outbreak in this group, although it can be difficult. That said, there are still many things we don’t know about the virus, and we need to be honest and admit it. The virus itself may have undergone changes that make it more transmissible, but we have certainly seen behaviors that make it more transmissible. This disease is presented as an infectious disease that spreads through close contact, including sexual contact. So the message to the public is this: educate yourself, learn to recognize the signs and symptoms, know under what circumstances you can become infected, protect yourself and protect others, and, in case of doubt, seek a diagnosis.
This interview, which took place on June 6, 2022, has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
—-
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 11, 2022.
Jean-Benoit Legault, The Canadian Press