https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/monkeypo ... -1.6461880
Do you guys think this will become something as bad as covid? Or will it just be something that requires close attention but no public health restrictions?
I'm pretty sure this is spread through close bodily contact, sexually, through bodily fluids etc (so I would assume we're fine) but I wonder if there's any public hysteria around this.

IceCream wrote:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/monkeypox-canada-global-outbreak-1.6461880
Do you guys think this will become something as bad as covid? Or will it just be something that requires close attention but no public health restrictions?
I'm pretty sure this is spread through close bodily contact, sexually, through bodily fluids etc (so I would assume we're fine) but I wonder if there's any public hysteria around this.

It this is gonna be something like AIDS then it would be limited to only high-risk groups. For us, the only issue would be if it were to spread through air or surfaces otherwise don't really see an issue.

pune wrote:

IceCream wrote:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/monkeypox-canada-global-outbreak-1.6461880
Do you guys think this will become something as bad as covid? Or will it just be something that requires close attention but no public health restrictions?
I'm pretty sure this is spread through close bodily contact, sexually, through bodily fluids etc (so I would assume we're fine) but I wonder if there's any public hysteria around this.

It this is gonna be something like AIDS then it would be limited to only high-risk groups. For us, the only issue would be if it were to spread through air or surfaces otherwise don't really see an issue.

Looks like you're right, it's being spread through what seems to be sexual contact at bars and bathhouses.

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp. That involves a lot of close contact.

Moreover, we have not one, but THREE effective vaccines, one of which can be used in the immunocompromised. We also have two effective antivirals.

We HAVE prepared for this pandemic.

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp.

Monkeypox from a "fetish" festival? Dare I ask what the "fetish" is

As far as the outbreak itself is concerned, and I'm sure I speak on behalf of many Canadians by saying "Dear Dr. Tam, with all due respect, please, just be quiet for just a few more months. Thank you".

ACDC8 wrote:

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp.

Monkeypox from a "fetish" festival? Dare I ask what the "fetish" is

As far as the outbreak itself is concerned, and I'm sure I speak on behalf of many Canadians by saying "Dear Dr. Tam, with all due respect, please, just be quiet for just a few more months. Thank you".

It was the Darklands festival in Antwerp. They had a "play tent" where there was of...close body contact.

The virus hasn't changed in behavior. It just happened to stumble into a completely new human behavior it had never encountered before. So this is good news.

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp. That involves a lot of close contact.

Truth is always stranger than fiction.

DocLightning wrote:

ACDC8 wrote:

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp.

Monkeypox from a "fetish" festival? Dare I ask what the "fetish" is

As far as the outbreak itself is concerned, and I'm sure I speak on behalf of many Canadians by saying "Dear Dr. Tam, with all due respect, please, just be quiet for just a few more months. Thank you".

It was the Darklands festival in Antwerp. They had a "play tent" where there was of...close body contact.

The virus hasn't changed in behavior. It just happened to stumble into a completely new human behavior it had never encountered before. So this is good news.

Natural selection at play here too. Act irresponsibly, win stupid prizes.

ObadiahPlainman wrote:

Natural selection at play here too. Act irresponsibly, win stupid prizes.

Don't get too smug. I don't think anyone realistically would have forseen monkeypox as being a real risk.

the reassuring news is that it doesn't need a major change in the behavior of the virus. It just needs the virus to wander into a setting where the behavior is...different. That means this should still be straightforward to contain.

DocLightning wrote:

ObadiahPlainman wrote:

Natural selection at play here too. Act irresponsibly, win stupid prizes.

Don't get too smug. I don't think anyone realistically would have forseen monkeypox as being a real risk.

the reassuring news is that it doesn't need a major change in the behavior of the virus. It just needs the virus to wander into a setting where the behavior is...different. That means this should still be straightforward to contain.

DocL - Thank you for your insights. I always appreciate the information that you bring to this place.

Geomap

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp. That involves a lot of close contact.

Moreover, we have not one, but THREE effective vaccines, one of which can be used in the immunocompromised. We also have two effective antivirals.

We HAVE prepared for this pandemic.

What Doc said and it doesn't seem to be airborne. I know non airborne pathogens can cause pandemics but it certainly helps.

What are the vaccines doc? I know Smallpox is one. I heard on a News clip that the chickenpox (varicella) vaccine does too. Don't know if that's true.

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp. That involves a lot of close contact.

Moreover, we have not one, but THREE effective vaccines, one of which can be used in the immunocompromised. We also have two effective antivirals.

We HAVE prepared for this pandemic.

The problem with the vaccines that work against Monkeypox is that they are all Smallpox vaccines. After Smallpox was eradicated in 1977, WHO didn't want ordinary civilians vaccinated against Smallpox, to deter use of Smallpox as a bioweapon. Access to all Smallpox vaccines is controlled by various countries' militaries. This international Monkeypox outbreak wouldn't have happened 50 years ago, because just about everyone in developed countries was vaccinated against Smallpox. There needs to be some loosening of controls on Smallpox vaccines in order to allow people living in areas where Monkeypox is endemic to get vaccinated and for travelers to those areas to also get vaccinated.

I also wonder what would happen if Measles were to be eradicated. Would the Measles vaccines be then taken off the market? There are lots of related diseases in animals that sometimes jump species. If we stopped vaccinating against Measles, couldn't that just make the human population more susceptible to a related zoonosis jumping over to humans?

StarAC17 wrote:

DocLightning wrote:

Most of the cases so far are linked to a fetish festival in Antwerp. That involves a lot of close contact.

Moreover, we have not one, but THREE effective vaccines, one of which can be used in the immunocompromised. We also have two effective antivirals.

We HAVE prepared for this pandemic.

What Doc said and it doesn't seem to be airborne. I know non airborne pathogens can cause pandemics but it certainly helps.

What are the vaccines doc? I know Smallpox is one. I heard on a News clip that the chickenpox (varicella) vaccine does too. Don't know if that's true.

The vaccines available in the US are Dryvax, ACAM2000,and MVA-BN.

Dryvax which is a freeze dried live New York Board of Health (1879) variety of vaccinia vaccine grown in calves. This was the vaccine that was supplied by the US to the WHO to eradicate Smallpox. It is given with a bifurcated needle that does not puncture the skin but leaves a scar if the vaccination was successful.

ACAM2000 is a modernized version of Dryvax ordered by the US DoD after the anthrax attacks a few weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. ACAM2000 is grown in monkey kidney cells in a bioreactor rather than in a live animal. The DoD contracts with the British pharmaceutical company Acambis called for them to manufacture enough vaccine doses using the same New York Board of Heal strain, so that everyone in the US could be vaccinated in an emergency.

The third vaccine is the MVA-BN (Modified vaccinia Ankara) manufactured by Bavarian Nordic. It is a vaccine developed from a strain of vaccinia developed by German scientists in Turkey in the 1960's. The intention was to make a safer vaccine that eliminate the serious side effects that can happen especially the first time a patient is vaccinated. The strain of vaccinia has lost the ability to replicate in human cells. Unfortunately by the time the safety of the Ankara strain was demonstrated, Smallpox was in the process of being eradicated. This meant it was not possible to test the MVA vaccine for efficacy in the real world against Smallpox. After the 2001 anthrax attacks, animal studies were performed at the CDC in level 4 containment labs in Atlanta. A protocol for vaccination with the MVA vaccine was tested. It is a two dose vaccine that is injected intramuscularly unlike previous Smallpox vaccines, and it leaves no scar. This vaccine is used by the German military. It is safe to use in people with immune disorders and exema.

The good news is that the US will be releasing some of its Jynneos Smallpox vaccine from the strategic vaccine stockpile. The bad news is that it is only licensed for adults 18 and over. Children if exposed to Monkeypox are at much higher risk of severe complications or death. The old fashioned replicating vaccinia vaccine is by far the most dangerous vaccine known to medical science. That's one big reason why Smallpox was targeted as the first disease to be eradicated. The Jynneos vaccine developed by Bavarian Nordic based on the MVA (Modified Vaccina Ankara) is a live virus that is incapable of replicating in mammalian cells and inherently much safer than the ACAM2000 vaccine that is a modernized version of the Smallpox vaccine used in the US in the 1950's to 1970's. I know I would not want my 2 year old son to be given the ACAM2000 vaccine. Would the FDA allow emergency use of Jynneos in children from birth to 17 if there was a high risk that they were exposed to Monkeypox?

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, September 24, 2019 – Bavarian Nordic A/S (OMX: BAVA, OTC: BVNRY) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved JYNNEOS™ (Smallpox and Monkeypox Vaccine, Live, Non-replicating) (MVA-BN®, liquid-frozen) for prevention of smallpox and monkeypox disease in adults 18 years of age and older determined to be at high risk for smallpox or monkeypox infection. JYNNEOS is the only approved non-replicating smallpox vaccine in the U.S. and the only approved monkeypox vaccine anywhere in the world.

https://www.bavarian-nordic.com/investo ... ?news=5758

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/3 ... monkeypox/

https://www.foxbusiness.com/healthcare/ ... ckpile-cdc

As monkey pox cases continue to rise globally it has now raised concerns that this infection flare-up might lead to bigger outbreak across the world.

The French Public Health Agency says that all of the reported Monkeypox cases so far have been men aged between 22 and 63.

Canada reports that the most cases reported are in the province of Quebec.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp50Hjer_A4

DIRECTFLT wrote:

As monkey pox cases continue to rise globally it has now raised concerns that this infection flare-up might lead to bigger outbreak across the world.

The French Public Health Agency says that all of the reported Monkeypox cases so far have been men aged between 22 and 63.

Canada reports that the most cases reported are in the province of Quebec.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp50Hjer_A4

National public health agencies like the CDC should start recommending aggressive ring vaccination programs around known outbreaks. Furthermore, countries in Africa with outbreaks should probably eventually start recommending universal vaccination of their citizens against Monkeypox. The reason Monkeypox is spreading is that 45 years after the last recorded wild Smallpox case, most civilians around the world have never been vaccinated against Smallpox. The human population in countries where Monkeypox is endemic among animals needs to be vaccinated to prevent transmission to the outside world. Likewise visitors to those countries should be vaccinated. The US should also mandate vaccination of live animals from those regions before transport to the US.

Texas reports first case of monkeypox, but officials say it poses little risk to the public

With the Texas case reported Tuesday, about 35 cases have now been identified across 14 states and Washington, D.C., this year, according to the CDC.

by Cecilia Lenzen June 7, 2022

https://www.texastribune.org/2022/06/07 ... as-county/

The case was identified in a Dallas County resident who recently traveled internationally, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.

The CDC issued the following recommendations to travelers to avoid contracting the disease: Avoid close contact, including sexual contact, with sick people; wash your hands often and avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth; avoid contact with dead or alive animals; avoid eating or preparing meat from wild game; and avoid contact with contaminated materials used by sick people.

Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease, meaning that it can spread from animals to humans and between humans, according to the World Health Organization. The disease is usually found in West and Central Africa, where the animals that may carry the virus typically live.

The disease is commonly transmitted to humans through close contact with an infected person or animal, according to WHO. It can also be transmitted from person to person by inhaling large respiratory droplets or through close contact with body fluids and lesions or bedding and other contaminated materials. One common way monkeypox can spread is through sexual contact. Many of the reported cases have been identified in men who have sex with men.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is looking into reports that the monkeypox virus is present in the semen of patients, exploring the possibility that the disease could be sexually transmitted, a WHO official said on Wednesday. However, the agency reiterated that the virus is mainly transmitted via close interpersonal contact. Many of the monkeypox cases confirmed in the current outbreak, largely centred in Europe, are among sexual partners who have had such close contact. In recent days, scientists have detected viral DNA in the semen of a handful of monkeypox patients in Italy and Germany, including a lab-tested sample that suggested the virus found in the semen of a single patient was capable of infecting another person and replicating.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnfBBUIMjyI

Tips from the CDC June 2022:

Social Gatherings, Safer Sex and Monkeypox

https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/ ... ex-508.pdf

DIRECTFLT wrote:

Tips from the CDC June 2022:

Social Gatherings, Safer Sex and Monkeypox

It's OK. Some people are on PrEP. Can't get any safer than that.
</sarcasm>

First Singapore case recorded in British flight attendant.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-61890802

Health officials said the man was in a stable condition after testing positive for the disease on Monday and had been taken into an isolation ward.
Thirteen of his close contacts have also been put in quarantine. They were his crew and airline colleagues, some media outlets reported.

Received my first dosage of the vaccine (Imvamune) last night. A bit of soreness around the injection point but otherwise feel fine. Toronto Public Health is doing pop-up clinics for higher risk populations all week. The clinic I visited was lined out the door.

Daily rate of confirmed global cases continues climbing



https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FV5Wb9_XgAA ... name=large

I think public health agencies should be more aggressive about vaccinating people who have potentially been exposed. The worst possible outcome would be for animals outside of Africa to get exposed to Monkeypox and become an animal reservoir of the disease.

Who's at risk for this?

LabQuest wrote:

Who's at risk for this?

People who have regular close body contact with different other people. The most common way of transmission seems to be sexual activities but any physical contact can suffice, e. g. between friends, family members or patients and medical staff.

mxaxai wrote:

LabQuest wrote:

Who's at risk for this?

People who have regular close body contact with different other people. The most common way of transmission seems to be sexual activities but any physical contact can suffice, e. g. between friends, family members or patients and medical staff.

Thank you. So far it seems rather like chicken pox with its symptoms from what I've read. "Somewhat" harmless for most people who get it.

It seems, from what I have read, to have taken a hold in the gay and bisexual community. Or men who have sex with men (but may not identify as gay or bi). There seems to be a high proportion of infections amongst the community.

The World Health Network which is a collaboration of scientific teams announced that they are declaring the current monkeypox outbreak a pandemic.

https://www.worldhealthnetwork.global/m ... essrelease

mercure1 wrote:

The World Health Network which is a collaboration of scientific teams announced that they are declaring the current monkeypox outbreak a pandemic.

https://www.worldhealthnetwork.global/m ... essrelease

I'm absolutely amazed and disgusted that we got here. It's as if we learned nothing from the HIV pandemic, which also predominantly affects MSM. There were opportunities to do some important messaging to the community and yet world leaders buried their heads in the sand.

Fortunately, we do have good vaccines. I wonder how long the CDC will drag its feet this time before we healthcare workers can be inoculated. How about offering it to the gay community? At least this time the FDA shouldn't have to weigh in because the vaccines are already licensed.

The other fortunate thing is that this particular virus seems mild. Even in the MSM community with its HIV+ members, there have been no deaths yet outside of Africa. That mildness may explain how it has managed to spread unnoticed. It might have been circulating for years, but we only just noticed it.

mercure1 wrote:

The World Health Network which is a collaboration of scientific teams announced that they are declaring the current monkeypox outbreak a pandemic.

https://www.worldhealthnetwork.global/m ... essrelease

What is the “World Health Network?” It’s not an official government agency or major NGO.

Agree with Doc’s sentiment, should not have gotten to this point and ridiculous that basic public health and safety awareness has had to pay deference to political correctness.

WHO holds emergency meeting and will consider declaring Monkeypox a "public health emergency of international concern."

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/who-world- ... emergency/

LAXintl wrote:

WHO holds emergency meeting and will consider declaring Monkeypox a "public health emergency of international concern."

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/who-world- ... emergency/

Why wasn't it before now? I'm sure many in certain African countries are wondering why this took so long.

Why the monkeypox outbreak is mostly affecting men who have sex with men

https://www.science.org/content/article ... x-with-men

The virus did not spread well between people in the past but may have found a new niche in tightly connected sexual networks

SEAorPWM wrote:

LAXintl wrote:

WHO holds emergency meeting and will consider declaring Monkeypox a "public health emergency of international concern."

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/who-world- ... emergency/

Why wasn't it before now? I'm sure many in certain African countries are wondering why this took so long.

It wasn't really an "international" concern until now.

DIRECTFLT wrote:

Why the monkeypox outbreak is mostly affecting men who have sex with men

https://www.science.org/content/article ... x-with-men

The virus did not spread well between people in the past but may have found a new niche in tightly connected sexual networks

But no one knows if the newer variant of Monkeypox has lost the ability to replicate in other mammals. All it takes is for someone outside of Africa to infect wild mammals in other continents like North America to cause it to become endemic in other continents. It's better to vaccinate anyone who is likely to be at risk in order to prevent transmission to animals who can then become animal reservoirs of the virus.

Someone should declare a month of phone sex or something to cut off the virus from its hosts...

Aesma wrote:

Someone should declare a month of phone sex or something to cut off the virus from its hosts...

LOL people wouldn't even wear masks for COVID.

The demand for vaccines outstrips supply in NYC.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-62188005

The US has received 370,000 out of nearly 7m vaccine doses that the government has purchased in total. But millions of the doses are not expected to arrive until next year.

I would like to remind everyone that just because a virus shows up in semen or vaginal fluid, that in and of itself does not mean it is a STI. It depends on the physiology of transmission.

And example is ebolavirus. The virus is known to be able to exist in the testes and in the vitreous of the eye for many months after the body has cleared the virus. Many viruses have shown this possibility. Recovered EBOV patients have spread ebola via unprotected sex, even though they're negative on PCR blood assays. That does not make ebolavirus a STI.

Monkeypox can be spread by skin to skin contact and contact with linens used by MPX+ persons.

I got my first dose of Jynneos today.

WHO finally declares monkeypox a global health emergency

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-62279436

The WHO's assessment is that the risk of monkeypox is moderate globally and in all regions, except in the European region, where we assess the risk as high. There is a clear risk of further international spread.
The declaration would help speed up the development of vaccines and the implementation of measures to limit the spread of the virus. The WHO is also issuing recommendations which it hopes will spur countries to take action to stop transmission of the virus and protect those most at risk.

mercure1 wrote:

WHO finally declares monkeypox a global health emergency

https://www.bbc.com/news/health-62279436

The WHO's assessment is that the risk of monkeypox is moderate globally and in all regions, except in the European region, where we assess the risk as high. There is a clear risk of further international spread.
The declaration would help speed up the development of vaccines and the implementation of measures to limit the spread of the virus. The WHO is also issuing recommendations which it hopes will spur countries to take action to stop transmission of the virus and protect those most at risk.

Between the impending economic disaster coming up and now this, looks like the airlines can kiss any recovery in international travel goodbye.

War, pestilence, disease and famine. Check.
Economic turmoil. Coming.
Nuclear War. God I hope not.

If you see 7 horsemen in your neighborhood, then run like hell.

WesternDC6B wrote:

I think antiques like me are already okay because we had the smallpox vaccine.

If you had smallpox vaccines years back you need a booster. When my roommate mother was working for the government years back they were vaccinated multiple times over 20 years for smallpox. That might have changed, but I would check if it os an issue for you.

rbavfan wrote:

WesternDC6B wrote:

I think antiques like me are already okay because we had the smallpox vaccine.

If you had smallpox vaccines years back you need a booster. When my roommate mother was working for the government years back they were vaccinated multiple times over 20 years for smallpox. That might have changed, but I would check if it os an issue for you.

They have some leftover protection, but they definitely need a booster.

DocLightning wrote:

mercure1 wrote:

The World Health Network which is a collaboration of scientific teams announced that they are declaring the current monkeypox outbreak a pandemic.

https://www.worldhealthnetwork.global/m ... essrelease

I'm absolutely amazed and disgusted that we got here. It's as if we learned nothing from the HIV pandemic, which also predominantly affects MSM. There were opportunities to do some important messaging to the community and yet world leaders buried their heads in the sand.

Fortunately, we do have good vaccines. I wonder how long the CDC will drag its feet this time before we healthcare workers can be inoculated. How about offering it to the gay community? At least this time the FDA shouldn't have to weigh in because the vaccines are already licensed.

The other fortunate thing is that this particular virus seems mild. Even in the MSM community with its HIV+ members, there have been no deaths yet outside of Africa. That mildness may explain how it has managed to spread unnoticed. It might have been circulating for years, but we only just noticed it.

HIV predominantly affected MSM in the US. World wide it was and still is different.

rbavfan wrote:

DocLightning wrote:

mercure1 wrote:

The World Health Network which is a collaboration of scientific teams announced that they are declaring the current monkeypox outbreak a pandemic.

https://www.worldhealthnetwork.global/m ... essrelease

I'm absolutely amazed and disgusted that we got here. It's as if we learned nothing from the HIV pandemic, which also predominantly affects MSM. There were opportunities to do some important messaging to the community and yet world leaders buried their heads in the sand.

Fortunately, we do have good vaccines. I wonder how long the CDC will drag its feet this time before we healthcare workers can be inoculated. How about offering it to the gay community? At least this time the FDA shouldn't have to weigh in because the vaccines are already licensed.

The other fortunate thing is that this particular virus seems mild. Even in the MSM community with its HIV+ members, there have been no deaths yet outside of Africa. That mildness may explain how it has managed to spread unnoticed. It might have been circulating for years, but we only just noticed it.

HIV predominantly affected MSM in the US. World wide it was and still is different.

HIV predominately affected MSM in the US AT FIRST. To say HIV in the US is a MSM issue is myopic, and borderline prejudiced at this point. HIV should be a concern for anyone who is sexually active.

Re. Monkeypox. The strain spreading belongs to clade 3 of the West African monkeypox strain, which has a <1% case-fatality rate, and usually is endemic from Cameroon to Sierra Leone. The Congo Basin strain (Congo, Central African Republic) is the more fatal one. This "new western" strain has evolved to be more transmissible. The study from Portugal's NIH (the first to genetically sequence the "new western" strain) shows it has 50 single nucleotide polymorphisms and several mutations. This is interesting because the substitution rate (or mutation rate) is 6-12 times greater than what should be naturally expected.

With the US specifically, there is a lack of the ability isolate positive patients and support them. It seems like the US does not even care to provide this necessary isolation and support structure to prevent spread of pathogens. The US will have a very hard time overcoming this concern. One thing about gay and queer MSM, they're going to take vaccines. The vaccine uptake % in that group is astounding. Wait until this monkeypox gets in anti-vax hetero circles. They are all going to be full of pustules inside and out, scratching, itching, burning, and spreading pestilence.

flyingclrs727 wrote:

DIRECTFLT wrote:

Why the monkeypox outbreak is mostly affecting men who have sex with men

https://www.science.org/content/article ... x-with-men

The virus did not spread well between people in the past but may have found a new niche in tightly connected sexual networks

But no one knows if the newer variant of Monkeypox has lost the ability to replicate in other mammals. All it takes is for someone outside of Africa to infect wild mammals in other continents like North America to cause it to become endemic in other continents. It's better to vaccinate anyone who is likely to be at risk in order to prevent transmission to animals who can then become animal reservoirs of the virus.

The virus is zoonotic. If you seroconvert, you need to isolate away from pet mammals.