WHO convenes emergency committee over monkeypox

The World Health Organization (WHO) convenes the emergency committee because of the worldwide spread of monkeypox infections.

Geneva - This should assess in the next week whether the outbreak represents a health emergency of international scope, said WHO chief Tedros Ghebreyesus on Tuesday. The current outbreak of monkeypox is "unusual and worrying". "So far this year, more than 1,600 confirmed cases and nearly 1,500 suspected cases of monkeypox have been reported to the WHO from 39 countries - including seven countries that have had monkeypox for years and 32 newly infected countries," he said.

This year, 72 deaths have also been reported from previously affected countries, but no deaths from the newly affected countries. Reports of a death in Brazil are still being investigated. Among the groups most at risk were men who have sex with other men and their close contacts.

However, the WHO still does not recommend mass vaccination against monkeypox. The World Health Organization is also currently looking for a new name. Since May 2022, cases of monkeypox have been registered in various countries outside of Africa, including Germany.

As of Tuesday, 229 monkeypox cases from 11 federal states have been reported to the Robert Koch Institut, in Germany.

Source: Der Newsticker

Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration.