The World Health Organization (WHO) reports a 20% increase in monkeypox cases for the second consecutive week, a CDC investigation finds traces of viruses detected by PCR on frequently used household surfaces, and more in this week’s news roundup on monkeypox.
- At a press conference on August 17, the WHO reported a 20% increase in monkeypox cases for the second week in a row. “More than 35,000 cases of monkeypox have now been reported to WHO, from 92 countries and territories, with 12 deaths,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Almost 7,500 cases were reported last week, a 20% increase from the previous week, also 20% more than the previous week.” According to Tedros, most new infections have been reported among men who have sex with men (MSM). (Carbajal, Becker Hospital Review08/18)
- After the WHO announced on August 12 that it was accepting suggestions to rename monkeypox to reduce stigma and adhere to best practices for naming diseases, the agency received numerous submissions on its International Classification website. diseases, including “humanpox”, “lymphpox”, “mpox”, “gray pox” and “doloropox”. According to the WHO, the virus was named after it was first identified in laboratory monkeys in 1958, before best practices for naming diseases were established. Although the virus is currently named monkeypox, its original source is unknown and other species may carry the disease. “Current best practice is that newly identified viruses, related diseases and virus variants should be given names with the aim of avoiding offense to cultural, social, national, regional, professional or ethnic groups, and to minimize any negative impact on trade, travel, tourism or animal welfare,” the WHO said. Jeremy Faust, emergency physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, submitted a proposal to call the disease “orthopoxvirus disease 2022” or “OPOXID-22”. According to Faust, “OPOXID-22 is easy to pronounce and reflects what we know about this virus. Also, it removes “monkey” from the name, which is probably not the animal reservoir for this disease. Moreover, it is specific enough to distinguish itself from other future diseases, zoonotic or otherwise. Although the WHO has not established a specific timeline, the agency said a committee would review the proposed name changes and vote on a new name. (Carbajal, Becker Hospital Review08/22)
- A CDC investigation found that frequently used household surfaces in the homes of two symptomatic people infected with monkeypox were covered in virus detected by PCR. Of the 30 samples taken 20 days after the start of patient isolation, 70% came back positive for non-variola orthopoxvirus when testing positive real-time PCR, according to a team of researchers led by Jack Pfeiffer of the CDC. Epidemic Intelligence Service and some Utah Department of Health and Human Services. Positive swabs were from nonporous items (including a toilet seat, light switch, sink handle, handrail, and computer mouse), porous items (including a couch, blankets, and chair long) and an office chair, which was considered a “mixed porous” object. The results for the patients’ TV remote control, bathroom door handle and thermostat were inconclusive. However, none of the lab culture results were positive. “The inability to detect viable virus suggests that virus viability may have deteriorated over time or by chemical or environmental inactivation,” Pfeiffer and his CDC colleagues wrote. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. “Although both patients were symptomatic and isolated in their homes for more than 3 weeks, their cleaning and disinfection practices during this time may have limited the level of contamination within the household.” (Eh, MedPage today08/19)
- In a survey released Monday by the CDC, about 50% of men who have sex with men (MSM) said they had reduced their number of sexual and dating partners in response to the monkeypox outbreak. Overall, 48% of participants reported reducing their number of sexual partners, 50% reported reducing their number of one-time sexual encounters, and 49% reported reducing the number of sexual encounters they had with partners met on dating apps or through sex venues. While public health agencies, including the WHO and CDC, have suggested that MSM consider reducing their number of sexual partners amid the ongoing outbreak, many officials have advised MSM to practice safe conduct safer sex instead of advising abstinence. (choi, The hill08/22)
- A growing body of evidence – which includes three studies recently published in peer-reviewed journals and reports from national, regional and global health experts – suggests that global transmission of monkeypox may be primarily through sexual contact. Based on this evidence, the skin-to-skin contact that occurs during sex likely poses a much lower risk than the sexual act itself. “A growing body of evidence supports that sexual transmission, particularly through seminal fluids, is occurring with the current MPX outbreak,” said Aniruddha Hazra, medical director of the University of Chicago Sexual Wellness Clinic. Understanding the main risk factors for transmission is key to reducing the risk of infection. Many experts have urged the CDC and other public health authorities to update their monkeypox communication strategies to better highlight the potential risk of sex among MSM, who currently account for nearly all cases in the United States. United States. However, Rosamund Lewis, the WHO’s technical lead for monkeypox, told NBC News that it’s “unfortunate but true” that “we don’t yet know” whether monkeypox is primarily sexually transmitted. “Reading the situation completely as solely due to anal or oral sex is very likely to be overkill,” she added. “The correlation may seem strong, but it doesn’t explain the whole picture of illness caused by this virus, so we need to keep an open mind.” (Ryan, NBC News, 8/17)
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