Understanding the Spread of Monkeypox in Europe: What You Need to Know
An in-depth look at the recent monkeypox cases emerging across Europe, including transmission methods, symptoms, and preventive measures.
Currently, there is no dedicated vaccine or specific treatment exclusively for monkeypox.
European Union countries have started reporting cases of monkeypox, a rare zoonotic viral infection transmitted through direct contact and respiratory droplets, including transmission from various animals to humans.
The incubation period typically ranges from 6 to 16 days but can extend up to 21 days. Infected individuals often experience fever and a rash that causes painful itching. Most cases are mild and resolve within two to three weeks. The fatality rate ranges from 1% to 10%.
- The first confirmed European case was reported on May 7 in a person who returned to England from Nigeria, where monkeypox is endemic.
- Since then, Portugal has reported 14 cases, Spain 7, and single cases have been identified in the United States, Sweden, and France. Italian authorities have confirmed one case and are investigating several others.
- Russia has not recorded any monkeypox cases, according to the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing. However, sanitary and quarantine measures at the borders have been intensified to prevent virus importation.
The unusual surge in cases outside Africa may indicate new transmission routes or changes in the virus, noted Ann Rimwan, Professor of Epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles. A colleague from England added:
This will not trigger a nationwide epidemic like COVID-19, but it is a serious outbreak of a significant disease — and we must take it seriously.
Jimmy Whitworth
Professor of International Public Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
While there is no specific monkeypox vaccine, antiviral medications developed for smallpox (targeting orthopoxvirus infections) are being used for prevention.
The monkeypox virus was first isolated in 1958 from laboratory monkeys in Copenhagen. The first human case was documented in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2003, the United States experienced an outbreak involving 71 cases linked to rodents imported from Ghana through pet stores.
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