WHO Director-General of the Center, Adanom Gebregesus, said on Tuesday that he had decided to convene the emergency committee on June 23rd because the virus had shown “unusual” recent behavior by spreading to countries far beyond Africa where it is endemic. “We believe that a coordinated response is also needed due to the geographical spread,” he told reporters. Declaring monkey pox as an international health emergency would give it the same characterization as the COVID-19 pandemic and would mean that the WHO considers the usually rare disease to be a continuing threat to countries worldwide. The United Kingdom said Monday it had 470 cases of smallpox across the country, with the vast majority in homosexual or bisexual men. British scientists said last week that they could not figure out if the spread of the disease in the UK had peaked. The meeting of external experts could also help improve understanding and knowledge about the virus, Tentros said, as the WHO published new guidelines on monkeypox vaccination. Dr Ibrahima Soce Fall, WHO director of emergency for Africa, said the number of cases was rising daily and health officials were facing “many gaps in knowledge of transmission dynamics” – both in Africa and beyond. her. “With the advice of the emergency committee, we can be in a better position to monitor the situation. “But that does not mean we are going straight to a public health emergency of international concern.” “We do not want to wait until the situation is out of control to start calling the emergency committee.” The UN Health Service does not recommend mass vaccination, but advises “prudent” use of vaccines. He said disease control is mainly based on measures such as surveillance, case monitoring and patient isolation. Last month, a top WHO adviser said the outbreak in Europe and beyond was most likely transmitted by sex at two recent rave parties in Spain and Belgium. Scientists warn that anyone, regardless of sexual orientation, can catch monkey pox if they are in close, physical contact with an infected person or his or her clothes or sheets. The WHO is working with partner countries to set up a mechanism by which certain smallpox vaccines – a related disease – could be made available to affected countries as research into their effectiveness against the new epidemic continues. The Center said more than 1,600 cases and nearly 1,500 suspected cases have been reported this year in 39 countries, including seven where monkey pox has been reported for years. A total of 72 deaths have been reported, but none in the countries most recently affected, such as Britain, Canada, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United States. The ongoing outbreak of monkey pox in Europe and elsewhere marks the first time the disease has been reported to spread to people without travel links to Africa. SHARE:
