[ad_1]
This is an excerpt from Second Opinion, a health and medical science news analysis delivered to our subscribers each week. If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can do so by clicking here here.
After an unprecedented global outbreak of mpox made headlines last summer, prompting widespread awareness campaigns and vaccination efforts, the virus appears to have disappeared.
Case down. Media coverage dried up.
So is the interest in vaccines.
In Toronto, one of the major cities affected by the months-long Canadian outbreak, public health data showed only 15 percent of people who received the first dose since completing the full series of shots.
Then, in January, the phone woke up in the same city: Four cases of the disease formerly known as monkeypox were reported in only a Span of 24 hours. Toronto’s public health unit later told CBC News all new cases were “locally acquired,” rather than linked to overseas travel.
A forgotten virus, perhaps – but not gone.
“There are still some transmissions going on,” said Dr. Zain Chagla, an infectious disease specialist and associate professor at McMaster University. “Unfortunately, I think we’re going to be dealing with this in the short term, and maybe for a while.”
Not surprisingly, the World Health Organization (WHO) called this week maintaining mpox is a public health emergency of international concern – and then record the number of new cases reported globally an increase of 70 percent from the previous week.
A cluster of Canadian cases serves as a reminder that the virus is still here, spreading to some degree. The situation elsewhere is worse. And the concern going forward is that this virus will continue to emerge in new populations, affecting vulnerable people as vaccination uptake declines.
“We can’t get comfortable with this,” said mpox researcher Jason Kindrachuk, a microbiologist at the University of Manitoba and the Canada Research Chair for emerging viruses.
“Yes, we have got things… but we have to respect the virus is not gone yet.”
‘Who knows’ what the summer will bring
The latest WHO report shows the number of reported cases continues to decline worldwide, but more than 30 countries continue to report new infections. Deaths also continue to rise, including at least two in the US so far this month.
“Even for the country [like the U.S.] which has declared, essentially, victory … it is important to remain vigilant,” said Dr. Boghuma Titanji, a physician-scientist at Emory University in Atlanta.
Overseas travel in the coming months remains a concern for Dane Griffiths, Ontario-based director Gay Men’s Sexual Health Alliancebecause of the ongoing epidemic abroad.
The highest increase in confirmed cases was in Mexico, with around 60 new infections since early February – and more than 3,800 in total – in countries that have not yet launched the mpox vaccine.
“Mexico does not have access to vaccines and has a higher burden of infection. People need to be aware, they need to be aware of local outbreaks that are traveling,” said Griffiths.
WATCH | How to recover from mpox:
Toronto residents share their experiences recovering from monkeypox, while officials and advocates say more support is needed for patients during weeks of isolation.
The number of cases worldwide is almost certainly low, due to limited surveillance in many parts of the world. Global efforts to track mpox have stalled, the WHO warned in a new report, and “the true burden of mpox remains unknown in most African countries.”
Canada’s first outbreak of mpox erupted last summer, and there have been about 1,500 known cases since then, mostly among men who have sex with men – a group most affected by the virus, which spreads rapidly through sexual contact. .
WHO also called on countries to do so work to eliminate the virus – by disrupting the chain of transmission, and containing any outbreaks – as much as possible.
It is not easy, because of the global reach of the virus and its unfathomable amount animal host can keep the virus silent. But this is a very important goal because of the pain that some people feel during an active infection, and the risk of death in people who are more vulnerable to serious illness, including anyone who is immunocompromised.
New study from Belgium, published in Eurosurveillancealso noted the potential for lingering symptoms, even weeks after infection.
“Most importantly, doctors should be aware of pain, scarring and mental health problems that can continue after the disease seems to limit itself,” wrote the author.
Vaccine access, uptake remains a concern
In addition to access to diagnostics and treatment, vaccination programs remain a key piece of the puzzle to tackle mpox, WHO said.
But many countries, including in Africa, still do not have access. Even in global cities that had a major outbreak last summer, and got a lot of shots – like Toronto and New York – absorption for the second dose has fallen off the cliff.
“The coverage for the second dose was definitely lower than expected,” said Griffiths, of Ontario. “I think it’s a quick turnaround for people, which makes sense. We’ve had months of low or no reported cases.”
It is also unclear how long the immunity lasts after one or two rounds of Jynneos mpox shots.
The smallpox vaccine, which provides some crossover protection against mpox, has been lost over time, which may have made more people susceptible to mpox in the first place – especially since the image has not been routinely used in Canada, or in any other country, for decades.
And, like other vaccines, the mpox shot is not 100 percent effective.
“There will always be breakthrough cases … we can’t give false assurances that, ‘Oh, you’ve been vaccinated, you’re all good’ – because it’s possible to get infected,” said Dr. Rosamund Lewis. , WHO’s technical lead for mpox, on the phone with CBC News.
More infections among women
While vaccination efforts continue, the WHO asserts that, at the global level, mpox transmission in the community continues to occur mainly among “vulnerable gay and bisexual populations and other men who have sex with men.”
People with HIV infection account for about half of all cases, and are also at risk of more severe disease.
However, as the worldwide epidemic ballooned, eventually causing more than 85,000 known cases and more than 90 deaths in 110 countries, there was also an increase in the proportion of cases in women and children – indicating the ability of this virus to attack a wider network of individuals. , when given the opportunity.
Data show the proportion of women infected globally remains less than 10 percent, but has doubled during the outbreak, Lewis said.
It could be because transmission is greater in African countries where the virus has been circulating for longer, she suggested, or it could be a reflection of trans or non-binary women being infected.
WATCH | Mpox cases to increase in Canada in 2022:
As monkeypox cases rise in Canada, there are concerns that a vaccine is not available, and time may be running out to contain the spread.
Canadian data shows that most mpox infections so far are among adults, usually 18 to 49, but there are also some cases among children and teenagers.
The virus is generally spread globally through sexual contact, but it has long been known that mpox can also transit in other settings, through close skin-to-skin contact in the household or by touching contaminated cloth or surfaces.
A case study from a tattoo parlor in Spain, published in January in the New England Journal of Medicineshowed that during a certain period, 36 percent of customers – most of whom were women – were infected, while almost all piercing and tattoo items tested came back positive for the virus.
Despite the concern, such situations “often occur fatally” where there is no continued transmission to the wider community, Chagla stressed.
Still, it’s “not a place we can ignore,” Lewis said, “because factions are creeping up.”
Researchers watch for adaptation
It’s also critical, scientists say, to track the evolution of this virus — and watch for adaptations that could lead to ongoing outbreaks among humans.
Researchers from the US National Institutes of Health recently developed a mouse model to study mpox virulence. Surprisingly, Clade IIb viruses – the strain behind the global outbreak – are less severe than the historical clades of this virus.
The results, the researchers said, suggest that the virus has evolved to become less severe, or adapted to infect other species.
Titanji said that no model study reflects what happens in the real world, although this is consistent with evidence showing Clade IIb is a less virulent strain.
“The more widespread it is in humans,” he added, “there is a real possibility that it will be more adapted to transmit human to human.”
The good news? The world has the tools to reduce transmission whenever it occurs, from vaccines to therapeutics – if we act quickly and use them.
“Flarifications are common with many infectious disease outbreaks,” Kindrachuk said.
“But at least we have some control over what that flare-up will look like.”
[ad_2]
Source link