Monkeypox may have been present in Africa long ago
As of May 25, worldwide, there were about 300 confirmed and suspected cases of monkeypox. Experts say the virus may have emerged silently for several years outside of Africa.
The sudden increase of monkey pox occurred in at least 20 countries around the world in the past month. This is the first time the disease has been reported to spread in a community outside of Africa.
Scientists are studying how the disease broke out in so many countries in such a short period of time. It is suspected that monkeypox had been circulating at low levels undetected in Europe for several years prior to the outbreak.
Professor David Heymann, who chairs the World Health Organization (WHO) expert group on infectious threats to global health, said it was possible the virus entered the UK 2 years ago. -3 years.
Between 2018 and 2019, four confirmed cases of monkeypox arrived in the UK. All are tourists from Nigeria. Three other cases in 2021 also have similar journeys.
It can be hypothesized that the virus has spread by chance entering a population potentially amplifying transmission.
Genetic studies of monkeypox virus in patients in the ongoing outbreak show similarity to those infected in the UK, Israel and Singapore in 2018 and 2019.
While the UK’s first official case of monkeypox in 2022 came from Nigeria on May 4, the virus existed before that.
On May 14, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) released images of monkeypox. Doctors at genital health clinics realize that some of their patients may already have this condition.
Cases that test negative for common infections. The doctor suspected they had gonorrhea before testing positive for monkeypox.
“This could be a virus that has been circulating undetected for quite some time,” said Professor Marc Van Ranst, a virologist at the University of Leuven in Belgium.
It remains unclear whether the mutations make the strain more contagious in humans, but the scientists indicate the virus evolved while infecting humans.
Prof Van Ranst said: “We know that chronic infection is not a valid hypothesis. That means there was a chain of infection events that seemed to go unnoticed.”
The Covid-19 pandemic may play a role, as people have less access to health services.
Professor Oyewale Tomori, a virologist and adviser to the Nigerian government, said more research is needed to understand what is happening.
“Between 2019 and 2020, if someone in Europe had a rash, you wouldn’t think of monkeypox. You assume other diseases are causing the condition.”
“If the surveillance system misses a case, that is of course an opportunity to spread from person to person. I think case amplification happens when a lot of people gather in close contact.”
An Yen (According to Guardian)
at Blogtuan.info – Source: vietnamnet.vn – Read the original article here
