The World Health Organization (WHO) is currently developing guidelines to contain the spread of monkeypox.
There are fears that the number of cases could rise further in the summer months, WHO chief adviser on infection risks David Heymann told Archyde.com on Saturday. The WHO assumes that the outbreak was triggered by sexual contact.
Performed in eleven unusual countries
So far, monkeypox has appeared in eleven countries where it does not usually spread. Scientists consider this to be very unusual. Monkeypox occurs mainly in Africa and rarely elsewhere. So far, more than 100 confirmed or suspected cases have been reported, most of them in Europe, in Austria there has not yet been any evidence of the virus.
Close contact is the most important transmission route for the virus, said Heymann. For example, parents who take care of sick children are just as at risk as health workers. He stressed that the monkeypox outbreak was not comparable to the early days of the coronavirus pandemic because the disease is not as easily transmitted.