The World Health Organization (WHO) says more than 6,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in 58 countries, with more than 80% of cases in Europe.
WHO is expected to determine whether to declare the outbreak a global health emergency, the highest level of alert, by the end of this month, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a virtual press conference from Geneva on Wednesday (6/7).
“I continue to be concerned about the scale and spread of this virus around the world,” Tedros said, adding that due to a lack of testing, many cases went unreported.
This viral infection, which is endemic in Africa, is usually mild and similar to the flu, but can cause abnormalities in skin texture. The current outbreak, started in May. It is not clear what the death rate from this virus is now, but the previous virus resulted in around 1% deaths.
Most cases of the virus have occurred in men ages 21 to 40, many of whom have had sex with other men, said Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe in a statement Friday.
But he added that “a small number of cases have also now been reported among household members, heterosexual contacts, and nonsexual contacts, as well as among children.”
The Associated Press news agency reports that there have been no reports of deaths from monkeypox in the US. [my/jm]
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