Monkeypox: New smallpox pandemic in sight?

We're not even out of the Covid-19 pandemic yet, and we have another virus ahead of us. This time, it's monkeypox, which has crossed over to humans. It has now spread to several countries around the world, including the UK, a country where you would not expect to find this disease.

So what's going on? Were we getting carefree with the end of Covid in sight and we entered a pandemic again? Are we going to have to do isolation again and ruin the summer again?

Let's be clear: Monkeypox is not another Covid, for now, there is no need to carry out confinements to contain the spread of this variant of smallpox. While Covid-19 was an infection caused by an unknown virus and for which there was no vaccine, Monkeypox is a known virus and for which we have vaccines.

There is so much talk about the subject, just because it is an unusual and unprecedented outbreak of this variant of smallpox and this has completely taken the scientists specialized in the disease by surprise because it is always worrying when a virus changes its behavior, because until now, the Monkeypox was pretty predictable.

What is Monkeypox?

Contrary to the common sense that smallpox was an “extinct” virus, the reality is that this extinction only applied to the human variant. In the animal kingdom, smallpox continued to exist, the most common being the bovine (cows) and ape (monkeys) variant.

This type of virus, in particular the simian, is commonly found in wild animals, more precisely in small rodents and not in monkeys, despite the name.

Monkeypox is a common virus in the rainforests of West and Central Africa, and often when a human comes into contact with an infected animal, the virus makes the jump between species.

However, this virus is difficult to spread, as it needs close and prolonged contact to transmit. Therefore, outbreaks tend to be small and usually go away naturally.

Sporadically, some cases arise outside Africa, but as a rule they are easily linked to someone who has traveled from a country where the virus is active and as such is easily controllable.

Monkeypox is a known virus, it is not new, and there are already vaccines and treatments to combat it. It is less dangerous than the common human smallpox virus, therefore “lighter”, although it can be a risk factor for young children, pregnant women and people with weak immune systems.

It spreads more slowly than Covid and the painful rashes, distinct from this type of infection, make it easily detectable, so it makes the job of finding people who may have been infected and vaccinating those who have been in contact with these people easier. are at risk of becoming infected.

monkeypox unusual

However, this is not a common infection. For the first time, the virus is being found in people with no clear link to West and Central Africa and emerging in countries where it had never appeared before. It is unclear from whom or how people are getting infected.

This variant of smallpox is being spread during sexual activities, like the AIDS virus, using micro-lesions on the genitals and surrounding areas, resulting from the practice of coitus.

Many of those affected are young homosexuals and bisexuals, but cases of infection are also being found in young heterosexuals.

Sir Peter Horby, Director of the Institute of Pandemic Sciences at the University of Oxford said:

“We are facing a new situation, this behavior is a surprise and a concern for us”.

“We are not facing a Covid two, but we need to act immediately to stop the virus from establishing itself, as this is something that we really have to avoid.”

The Doctor. Hugh Adler, a renowned physician who has treated many patients with the monkeypox variant (Monkeypox), agrees:

"It's not a pattern we've seen before - this is a complete surprise."

So what's going on?

We know this outbreak is different, but we don't know why. There are two options: either the virus has changed or it is the same virus, but it has found an alternative way to thrive.

Monkeypox is a DNA-based virus, so it doesn't mutate as quickly as Covid or the flu.

Preliminary genetic analyzes suggest that the current cases are closely related to the forms of the virus observed in 2018 and 2019. It is too early to be certain, but for now there is no evidence that it is a new variant.

But, as we've learned from unexpected outbreaks of viruses like Ebola and Zika over the past decade, a virus doesn't need to change to seize a new opportunity to adapt.

Apparently, Monkeypox is broadcasting more effectively than in the era of smallpox, but what's worse is that we're not seeing anything to suggest how it might be spreading.

We know that we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg, the detected cases do not fit into a clear picture of the way of transmission. Instead, many don't even seem to be related. So there are missing links in a chain that seems to be spreading across Europe and beyond.

A recent event in which a large number of people had gathered in the same place, providing a great spread of this variant of smallpox, like a festival, could explain the current situation.

Another alternative explanation for why so many different and unrelated people are being infected is if the virus had been active for longer than supposed and had gone unnoticed because of Covid.

In fact, this whole situation is still unclear and there are not enough cases to make an assertive judgment of what is really happening or what could happen, however we cannot forget that summer is at the door and with festivals where there are a lot of people together, it is likely that the transmission can speed up.

Conclusion

It is not clear why this infection is spreading more easily among gay and bisexual youth and less so among heterosexual youth. Are sexual behaviors facilitating the spread? Is it just a bizarre coincidence? There is still no concrete data to reach a conclusion.

We cannot forget that, because of AIDS, it is a community that is more aware of its sexual health, so it is strange that the virus is spreading more easily in this human group than in heterosexuals.

It could also be that the virus found an easier route of propagation in the younger, carefree layers. It must not be forgotten that the mass vaccinations against smallpox of the past may have provided the older generations with some protection against Monkeypox, since, after all, it is still smallpox.

Do we have to worry? Yes we do, but we don't need to panic and go after the alarming news that starts to emerge,

This, unfortunately, is one of the particularities of social communication today. With the Covid crisis practically over and with the same repetitive and saturating news about the Ukraine war, it is necessary to find a new bogeyman to keep people attentive and glued to the news.

What do you think of this new health crisis? Is this monkeypox, Monkeypox, another red flag to prove to us that we are not prepared for a serious pandemic? We want to know your opinion, do not hesitate to comment and if you liked the article, share and give a “like/like”.

Picture: © DR