ALTHOUGH the World Health Organization (WHO) believes that the monkeypox outbreak does not currently constitute a global health emergency, most of the organization’s experts say that the emergency nature of the (outbreak) and controlling its further spread requires intense response efforts
In a statement, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus agreed that monkeypox was a deeply concerning, evolving threat after a committee of experts convened to advise him whether to sound the UN health agency’s strongest alarm over the outbreak.
Since early May, a spike in monkeypox cases has been detected outside West and Central Africa where the disease has long been endemic and most of the new cases have been discovered mostly in Western Europe. More than 3,200 confirmed cases and one death have been reported to WHO following the detection of the disease from more than 50 countries,
“The emergency committee shared serious concerns about the scale and speed of the current outbreak. The (committee) advised me that at this moment the event does not constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), which is the highest level of alert WHO can issue, but recognized that the convening of the committee itself reflects the increasing concern about the international spread of monkeypox,” Tedros stated.
He added that the outbreak was “clearly an evolving health threat” that needed immediate action to stop further spread; using surveillance, contact-tracing, isolation and care of patients and ensuring vaccines and treatments are available to at-risk populations.”
WHO data showed that the vast majority of monkeypox cases had been observed among men who have sex with men, of young age, appearing in urban areas, in “clustered social and sexual networks.”
While a few members expressed differing views, the committee resolved by consensus to advise Tedros that at this stage, the outbreak was not a PHEIC but also recommended that countries improve diagnostics and risk communication.
metrosundaily
