The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Monkeypox outbreak can still be contained, insists UN health agency
The monkeypox outbreak that has been reported in 16 countries and several regions of the world can still be contained and the overall risk of transmission is low, the UN health agency said on Tuesday.
“What we know from this virus and these modes of transmission, this outbreak can still be contained, it is the objective of the World Health Organization and Member States to contain this outbreak and to stop it,” said Dr Rosamund Lewis, Head, Smallpox Secretariat, WHO Emergencies Programme.
“The risk to the general public therefore appears to be low, because we know that the main modes of transmission have been as described in the past.”
Latest data from WHO’s Member States to 22 May indicates more than “250 cases of confirmed and suspected cases of monkeypox from 16 countries and several WHO regions”.
Symptoms can be very similar to those experienced by smallpox patients, although they are less clinically severe, albeit visually dramatic, with raised pustules and fever that can last from two to four weeks.
According to WHO, this monkeypox outbreak has been transmitted primarily by close skin-to-skin contact, although the virus can also be passed by breath droplets and contaminated bedding. The incubation period of monkeypox is usually from six to 13 days but can range from five to 21 days. “We don’t yet have the information as to whether this would be transmitted through body fluids,” Dr Lewis noted, before urging potentially at-risk groups to “be mindful” when in close contact with others.
In an effort to warn against stigmatising those who fall sick from the virus, the UN health agency insisted that although most cases of infection have been linked primarily to men who have sex with men, this is probably because they are more proactive in seeking healthcare advice than others.
The disease “can affect anyone and (it) is not associated with any particular group of people,” Dr Lewis told journalists in Geneva.
She stressed that what is unusual about this outbreak is that “countries that are reporting monkeypox now are countries that do not normally have outbreaks of monkeypox. There are several countries in which this disease is endemic: Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Cameroon are reporting cases at the moment and there are other countries that have reported cases in the past.”
Although vaccination against smallpox provided protection against monkeypox in the past, people younger than 40 to 50 years of age today may be more susceptible to monkeypox infection as smallpox vaccination campaigns ended globally after the disease was eradicated in 1980.
Although WHO Member States asked WHO to keep stocks of smallpox vaccine in case of a new outbreak of the disease, Dr Lewis explained that “it’s been 40 years and these stockpiles may need to be refreshed - they certainly need to be revisited - and WHO has been working on that and has been looking at that also now.”
There are two variants of monkeypox virus: West African and Congo Basin (Central African). The first human case was identified in a child in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970 and although the name monkeypox originates from the discovery of the virus in monkeys in a Danish laboratory in 1958, it is a bit misleading, Dr Lewis explained.
“Most of animals that are susceptible to monkeypox are in fact rodents, Gambian giant pouched rats, dormice, prairie dogs; those are the types of animals from which there may be spillover - a zoonotic spillover - from animals into people who may be going into the forest, or who may be coming in contact with the virus from a zoonotic route.”
ends
STORY: Monkeypox - WHO
TRT: 1 min 50s
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 24 May 2022 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior medium shot, Palais des Nations flag alley, nations’ flags flying, a breezy day.
- Wide shot, podium with speakers in Press briefing room, Palais des Nations.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Rosamund Lewis, Head, Smallpox Secretariat, WHO Emergencies Programme: “So, what we know from this virus and these modes of transmission, this outbreak can still be contained, it is the objective of the World Health Organization and Member States to contain this outbreak and to stop it. The risk to the general public therefore appears to be low, because we know that the main modes of transmission have been as described in the past.”
- Medium shot, journalists, participants, side shot.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Rosamund Lewis, Head, Smallpox Secretariat, WHO Emergencies Programme: “As of 22 May we’ve had officially reported through all Member States – WHO Member States - over 250 cases of confirmed and suspected cases of monkeypox from 16 countries and several WHO regions.”
- Wide shot, journalists and participants sitting at table in front of laptops or taking notes.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Rosamund Lewis, Head, Smallpox Secretariat, WHO Emergencies Programme: “The countries that are reporting monkeypox now are countries that do not normally have outbreaks of monkeypox. There are several countries in which this disease is endemic: Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Cameroon are reporting cases at the moment and there are other countries that have reported cases in the past.”
- Medium shot, showing podium speaker checking mobile phone, looking out onto press room with journalists, TV camera and lighting panel.
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Dr Rosamund Lewis, Head, Smallpox Secretariat, WHO Emergencies Programme: “Most of animals that are susceptible to monkeypox are in fact rodents, Gambian giant pouched rats, dormice, prairie dogs those are the types of animals from which there may be spillover - a zoonotic spillover - from animals into people who may be going into the forest, or who may be coming in contact with the virus from a zoonotic route.”
- Close-up, hands typing on laptop keyboard.
- Medium shot, TV camera operator adjusting tripod.
- Medium shot, participants seated in front of laptops.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
Somalia: child hunger surges as humanitarian aid dries up – UNICEF
The global funding crisis for vital lifesaving work is taking a growing toll on the most vulnerable children in Somalia, where hundreds of health and nutrition facilities have been forced to close, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Friday
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
As the deadliest Ebola outbreak in DR Congo’s history continued spreading on Friday, UN responders renewed their urgent appeal for immediate international support, with existing funding for lifesaving work critically low.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC: In the fight against Ebola, bikers transporting dead bodies hold key to community engagement - WHO
From the frontlines of the deadliest-ever Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the UN’s World Health Organization (WHO) shared details on Tuesday of a massive push for community engagement, a day after yet another ambulance attack.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNFPA
Sudan: The harrowing reality of giving birth in a war zone
Sudanese women about to give birth are losing their babies and sometimes their own lives because of a lack of specialist healthcare support, amid the ongoing war, UN humanitarians said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , WHO
Colombia earthquake: International teams ready to support, says UN
As earthquake rescue efforts across western Colombia continued on Tuesday, UN agencies said that they stood ready to help “with everything we've got” if and when the request came from the authorities.
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | HRC
Myanmar's military has carried out a sustained campaign of deliberate attacks on civilians – including airstrikes on homes, schools and camps for displaced people, alongside arbitrary detention, torture and sexual violence – Human Rights Council-appointed investigators said on Tuesday.
1
6
1
1
Edited News | UNOG
In a new twist on panda diplomacy, UN Geneva welcomed five young peacocks to the Palace of Nations on Friday, a gift of India that preserves a tradition of keeping the stately birds in the grounds, that predates both the global body and its ill-fated predecessor, the League of Nations.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
Afghanistan’s hunger crisis intensifies as millions go without food aid – WFP
Afghanistan’s dire hunger crisis now affects 14 million people including babies fed on weak tea and a little bread by their despairing and dirt-poor parents.
In a new alert on Tuesday, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that one in three Afghans is now in the grip of acute food insecurity and that it lacks the resources to contain the deepening crisis.
1
1
2
Edited News | IOM
From fake jobs to forced crime: IOM sounds alarm on human trafficking behind online scams
A job offer can conceal a criminal network and a single click can lead to a nightmare. Lured by false promises of legitimate employment abroad, hundreds of thousands of people are being trafficked each year, held captive and forced to carry out online scams.
Ahead of World Day Against Trafficking in Persons marked on 30 July, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is raising the alarm over a rapidly expanding multibillion-dollar criminal industry that turns job seekers into victims of forced cybercrime.
1
1
1
Edited News | UN WOMEN
In Sudan’s El Obeid, women risk drone attacks by day and rape by night to access water
As war intensifies in the city of El Obeid in North Kordofan state, filling up a jerrycan of water comes at a high risk for women and girls: by day, drones strike water points and by night, women who venture out to fill a bucket risk rape. UN Women warns of a dual terror that has turned access to water into a deadly gamble.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights spokesperson Shabia Mantoo made the following remarks on stranded Hormuz seafarers abandoned for months at sea, at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the bi-weekly press conference in Geneva, Thameen Al-Kheetan, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Danielle Bell, head of UN Human Rights’ Ukraine team, spoke of the deepening impact of the war on the civilian population.