The World Health Organization has said it will change the name of the monkey’s smallpox to avoid discrimination and stigmatization as the virus continues to spread among people in an unprecedented global outbreak of the disease.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO, said the organization was “working with partners and experts around the world to change the name of the monkeypox virus, its clades and the disease that cause “.
The move comes after scientists called for an “urgent” change to the name, which they described as “inaccurate”, “discriminatory” and “stigmatizing” in a report released last week. An announcement about the new name will be made “as soon as possible,” Tedros said.
Similar concerns were raised at the height of the coronavirus pandemic when new variants of Covid were given the name of the countries or regions where they were first detected, leading to travel bans and other restrictions. In response, the WHO introduced a naming system that referred to new variants as letters of the Greek alphabet.
In the report, scientists are concerned that the “predominant perception” in the media and in the scientific literature is that the monkeypox virus is endemic in humans in some African countries, while the virus is mostly found in animals, which have historically caused occasional outbreaks when infecting people.
Scientists warn of “a growing narrative in the media and among many scientists who are trying to link the current global outbreak with Africa or West Africa, or Nigeria.” Although the UK Health Safety Agency first sounded the alarm after a person with monkeypox arrived in London from Nigeria on May 4, the virus had been spreading for some time. , mainly among men who have sex with men.
Currently, the WHO refers to two types of smallpox in monkeys, namely the clades “West African” and “Congo Basin (Central African)”. This year’s outbreak is driven by the first type, which is substantially less dangerous than the second.
“In the context of the current global outbreak, the continued reference and nomenclature of this African virus is not only inaccurate, but also discriminatory and stigmatizing,” the experts write. They then criticize the use of photos of African patients with smallpox lesions in the coverage of the outbreak in the global north.
In the report, scientists use the name “hMPXV” for the human smallpox virus as a placeholder to distinguish the virus that drives the current international outbreak in humans from the virus most commonly found in animals.
On Wednesday, the director of the WHO for Europe, Dr. Hans Kluge, said that the magnitude of the outbreak “poses a real risk”, he said in a media conference: “The longer the virus circulates, the more it will expand its reach and strengthen the settlement of the disease. It will reach non-endemic countries. It has called on “governments, health partners and civil society” to “act urgently” to “control this outbreak.”
At the same briefing, Steve Taylor, a member of the European Pride board, said that LGBTQ + events should not be closed in the light of the outbreak, but should be used to spread public health messages. on the smallpox of the monkey. He said about 750 Pride events are expected to take place in Europe this summer.
“We have been working with the WHO for the past few weeks to develop our messages and we will encourage Pride organizations from all over Europe to use their events to raise awareness about the facts about monkeypox so that people can protect themselves. “, he said. “It simply came to our notice then that some of those who oppose Pride and who oppose equality and human rights have already tried to use the monkey ‘s smallpox as a justification for a ban on Pride.
“We are pleased that the WHO guidelines are clear that Pride and major events should not be affected and are, in fact, opportunities to share important public health messages,” he added.
The UKHSA on Wednesday announced 52 more cases of smallpox in England, one in Scotland and one in Wales, bringing the UK total to 524 on 14 June. More than 1,800 cases of smallpox in dozens of countries outside Africa have now been confirmed in the latest outbreak.
The UKHSA urged people to contact a sexual health clinic if they have a blistering rash and have been in close contact, including sexual contact, with someone who has or may have had monkeypox for the past three weeks. or have been in West or Central Africa for the past three weeks.
The WHO will convene an emergency meeting of experts on monkeypox next week to report on whether the current outbreak is a public health emergency of international concern, which means it requires a coordinated response.