LONDON (ANTARA) – As many as 1,000 cases of monkeypox were reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) in an outbreak that is spreading outside African countries.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the risk of monkeypox developing in non-endemic countries was real, but preventable at this point.
A total of 29 countries have reported cases of monkeypox in the current outbreak, which began in May. No country has reported any deaths.
At a press conference in Geneva on Wednesday, Tedros also said there were more than 1,400 suspected cases of monkeypox this year in Africa and 66 deaths.
The WHO technical lead for monkeypox Rosamund Lewis said that “close interpersonal contact” was the main way the disease spread, though he added that the risk of airborne transmission was not fully known.
Health workers treating monkeypox patients must wear masks, he said.
Vaccination for health workers or people in close contact with the patient may be considered in some countries, the WHO said.
The vaccine used is designed to fight smallpox—a related more dangerous virus that was eradicated worldwide in 1980—but also serves to protect against monkeypox.
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