Monkeypox was not traditionally thought of as a sexually transmitted infection (STI), but Isaacs says it’s clearly a sexually transmissible disease, because it can be passed through sexual activity and other types of intimate contact. Tens of thousands of people have been affected in 94 countries, and there is clear “extended community spread,” Isaacs says.Ī standout characteristic of this outbreak is that it’s predominantly-though not exclusively-affecting men who have sex with men (MSM), and in many cases is being spread through sexual activity. The situation today is a far cry from these earlier scenarios. That outbreak lasted about two months, seemingly without human-to-human transmissions. got monkeypox from exposures to pet prairie dogs that became infected when they were co-housed with infected rodents imported from Ghana. In 2003, for example, 72 people in the U.S. Outbreaks outside Africa have occurred before, with animals playing a direct role in the spread. If human-to-human transmission occurred, he notes, it was typically confined to household contacts and rarely had a long chain of human-to-human spread. Historically, Isaacs says, many people who became sick acquired the infection directly from an animal, such as being exposed while hunting. Monkeypox is a disease endemic to Africa and is considered a zoonotic disease, one that is transmitted from animals to people. Unlike earlier outbreaks, human-to-human transmission is driving the recent monkeypox spread He shares key insights about what is known about the disease, including its presentation, prevention, and treatment, as well as thoughts about what to look for as the outbreak evolves. Isaacs, an expert on the poxvirus family, which includes monkeypox as well as smallpox, and vaccinia virus, the virus used to make the available vaccines, spoke with Penn Today about the outbreak. Vulnerable groups, such as children, the elderly, and the immunocompromised, may be particularly at risk of serious outcomes. and about a dozen noted around the world, the disease can cause painful and lasting lesions and sometimes intense fever and malaise. While fatalities from this outbreak have been minimal, with none recorded in the U.S. As the spread continues, so does misinformation and concern. Yet the public health response has failed to contain the disease, and a vaccine, while effective and approved, is in short supply. Select cities, like San Francisco and New York, have declared their own emergencies. 4, President Biden declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency, following on the heels of an emergency declaration by the World Health Organization on July 23. There are probably many cases and transmissions going undetected.” “But it’s concerning, and with more testing going on, I think we’re going to continue to find cases. “It’s not the same explosive spread like we saw with COVID,” says Stuart Isaacs, an associate professor of medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine. Last week, the number of confirmed cases topped 14,000, with more than 41,000 affected worldwide.
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As recently as early July, monkeypox case counts in the United States hovered under 100.