The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that there may be an increase in cases of the rare virus, called monkey pox, due to the greater organization of the holidays in the summer months.
"As we enter the summer period in the European region, with mass festivals, festivals and various parties, I am concerned that the prevalence of may increase although the cases identified are now among those involved in sexual activity and the symptoms are unknown to many people ", said the director of the WHO for Europe, Hans Kluge through a statement, reports REL
More than 100 cases of viral infection have been confirmed in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands and Britain. Several cases have also been identified in the United States, Canada and Australia.
Monkey pox, most common in western and central Africa, causes mild illness, characterized by fever and lumps in the body. Originally identified in monkeys, the disease spreads in cases of very close contact and has rarely spread outside Africa. Scientists do not expect an outbreak like the coronavirus because this virus does not spread as easily as SARS-COV-2.
The WHO has said recent cases are unusual because almost all individuals affected by the virus have not had a history of traveling to areas where monkey pox is endemic, but also because cases are being identified in men who commit sexual intercourse with men.
In Britain, where 20 cases have been confirmed, health services have said most of those infected are gay or bisexual men.
Another 14 cases identified in Portugal have been related to men having sex with other men.
Fabian Leendertz from the Robert Koch Institute in Germany described the outbreak as an epidemic, but said it would be isolated through contact tracking and drug treatment. Leaf monkeys are commonly reported in Central and West Africa. It is considered endemic to the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it was first identified in humans in 1970.