Professional: Monkeypox possible spread by sex at 2 raves in Europe

LONDON (AP) — A leading adviser to the World Well being Group described the unprecedented outbreak of monkeypox in developed countries as “a random occasion” that seems to have been caused by sexual exercise at two latest raves in Europe.

Dr. David Heymann, who formerly headed WHO’s emergencies division, advised The Related Press that the leading idea to clarify the unfold of the illness was sexual transmission at raves held in Spain and Belgium. Monkeypox has not previously triggered widespread outbreaks beyond Africa, the place it is endemic in animals.

“We know monkeypox can spread when there may be close contact with the lesions of somebody who is contaminated, and it seems to be like sexual contact has now amplified that transmission,” mentioned Heymann.

That marks a major departure from the illness’s typical sample of unfold in central and western Africa, the place people are primarily infected by animals like wild rodents and primates and outbreaks haven't spilled across borders.

Well being officials say many of the recognized circumstances in Europe have been among males who've intercourse with men, however anyone may be infected through shut contact with a sick individual, their clothing or bedsheets. Scientists say it will likely be troublesome to disentangle whether the unfold is being driven by intercourse or merely shut contact.

“By nature, sexual activity involves intimate contact, which one would expect to extend the chance of transmission, no matter an individual’s sexual orientation and irrespective of the mode of transmission,” stated Mike Skinner, a virologist at Imperial Faculty London.

On Monday, the European Centre for Illness Prevention and Control Director Andrea Ammon mentioned “the likelihood of further unfold of the virus through shut contact, for example throughout sexual actions among individuals with multiple sexual partners, is taken into account to be excessive.”

To this point, WHO has recorded greater than 90 instances of monkeypox in a dozen countries including Canada, Spain, Israel, France, Switzerland, the U.S. and Australia.

On Monday, Denmark announced its first case, Portugal revised its total upwards to 37, Italy reported one additional infection and Britain added 37 more cases.

U.S. well being officers stated Monday they knew of one confirmed case, within the state of Massachusetts, and 4 probable circumstances — two in Utah, one in Florida and one in New York Metropolis. All had been men who had traveled exterior the U.S.

Germany has four confirmed instances linked to publicity at “party occasions ... where sexual activity occurred” in Spain’s Canary Islands and in Berlin, in accordance with a authorities report to lawmakers obtained by the AP.

Madrid’s senior health official mentioned Monday that the Spanish capital had 30 confirmed instances. Enrique Ruiz Escudero mentioned authorities are investigating doable hyperlinks between a current Gay Pleasure event within the Canary Islands, which drew some 80,000 people, and instances at a Madrid sauna.

The monkeypox instances so far have been gentle, with no deaths reported. Usually, the virus causes fever, chills, rash and lesions on the face or genitals. Most individuals get well inside several weeks without requiring hospitalization.

Vaccines in opposition to smallpox, a associated illness, are efficient in preventing monkeypox and some antiviral medicine are being developed. Lately, the illness has been fatal in up to 6% of infections.

Heymann chaired an urgent assembly of WHO’s advisory group on infectious illness threats on Friday to assess the outbreak and said there was no proof to counsel that monkeypox had mutated right into a more infectious form.

The U.N. company mentioned the outbreak is “a extremely unusual occasion” and mentioned the fact that cases are being seen in so many alternative countries suggests the virus could have been silently spreading for some time. The company’s Europe director warned that festivals and parties may accelerate unfold.

Nonetheless, at a public session on Monday, WHO officials described the outbreak as “containable” and cautioned in opposition to stigmatizing affected teams, saying the disease can infect anyone.

The company said the cases gave the impression to be linked to a monkeypox virus that was first detected in exported instances from Nigeria to Britain, Israel and Singapore in 2018 and 2019.

Authorities in Britain, Spain and Portugal have said a lot of the circumstances recognized to this point had been in young men whose infections have been picked up once they sought assist for lesions at sexual well being clinics.

Heymann, who can be a professor of infectious diseases at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Drugs, mentioned the monkeypox outbreak was possible a random occasion that may be traceable to a single an infection.

“It’s very doable there was any person who got contaminated, developed lesions on the genitals, arms or some place else, after which spread it to others when there was sexual or shut, bodily contact,” Heymann hypothesized. “After which there were these worldwide occasions that seeded the outbreak around the world, into the U.S. and other European nations.”

He emphasized that the illness was unlikely to trigger widespread transmission.

“This is not COVID,” he stated. “We have to slow it down, however it doesn't unfold within the air and we've got vaccines to protect against it.”

Heymann said studies should be performed quickly to determine if monkeypox might be spread by individuals with out symptoms and that populations liable to the illness ought to take precautions to guard themselves.

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Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal, and Frank Jordans and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin, contributed to this report.