Natalie Grover and Jennifer Rigby

LONDON (Reuters – Over 100 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in Europe. German officials described it as one the most severe in Europe.

Numerous cases have been confirmed across countries such as the United Kingdom of England, Spain, Portugal and Belgium.

The first case was in monkeys. Since the disease is spread by close contact, it has not been seen outside Africa.

Scientists don’t expect that the epidemic will become a pandemic such as COVID-19 because the virus doesn’t spread nearly as quickly as SARS/COV-2.

The common monkeypox virus is mild and usually causes symptoms like fever, as well as an unusual bumpy rash.

“There are several cases confirmed in Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom. This is the most severe and widespread monkeypox outbreak ever observed in Europe,” stated Germany’s medical service for the armed forces, who detected the first case on Friday.

Fabian Leendertz of the Robert Koch Institute described it as an epidemic.

It is unlikely this outbreak will continue for long. “The cases can easily be identified by contact tracing, and drugs and vaccines can also be administered if needed,” he stated.

According to the World Health Organisation, although there’s no specific vaccine to prevent monkeypox from occurring, evidence shows that some vaccines used in smallpox eradication are as effective against monkeypox as 85% according to WHO data.

British officials said Thursday that they offered smallpox vaccinations to certain healthcare professionals and other people who might have had monkeypox.

UNUSUAL CAUSES

Monkeypox has been confirmed in eleven African countries since 1970. Nigeria has experienced a severe outbreak in 2017; there have been 46 confirmed cases.

On May 7, the first European case was confirmed by an individual from Nigeria who had returned to England.

According to an Oxford University academic tracker, over 100 confirmed cases of the disease have been reported outside of Africa since then. https://twitter.com/MOUGK/status/1527055553876348928

Most of these cases cannot be linked to traveling to the continent. Although the source of the epidemic is not known, health officials believe that some community spreading may be involved.

The UK Health Security Agency confirmed 20 cases of the disease in Britain. It said that the majority of the cases were among gay men and bisexual men.

All 14 of the cases found in Portugal were also among gay men, bisexual men and men who had sex with them.

Alessio Di Amato, the health commissioner in Lazio, Italy, stated that the diagnosis of this illness is not yet clear. Three confirmed cases were reported in this country so far.

Stuart Neil, professor of Virolology at Kings College London, said that sexual contact is defined as close contact.

He said, “The notion that there is some kind of sexual transmission here, I believe, is a bit of stretch.”

The WHO stated that scientists are currently sequencing different viruses to determine if there is a link. It is likely that the agency will soon provide an update.