June 8, 2022 – The incidence of monkeypox in non-endemic countries around the world continues to rise, with 780 confirmed cases from 27 countries reported as of June 2. No deaths have been reported during the current epidemic. A total of 14 laboratory-confirmed cases from two countries have been reported in the Eastern Mediterranean region: 13 cases in the United Arab Emirates and one case in Morocco.
The WHO Regional Office is working with health authorities in these two countries to manage the current epidemic and prevent further transmission through enhanced surveillance and contact tracking, and to ensure that health workers are protected while treating infectious patients. All patients are now isolated while recovering, usually within a few weeks of maintenance treatment.
We are also working with these countries to raise awareness among potentially affected communities, as well as health care providers and laboratory workers, which is essential for identifying and preventing further secondary cases and effectively managing the current epidemic.
Right now, these outbreaks can be stopped. But it is crucial that states support health services and stop further transmission of cases.
In countries where no confirmed cases have been reported, the WHO is working with health authorities to increase preparedness measures, including raising public awareness of the disease and its symptoms, ensuring health professionals are able to quickly detect and isolate suspicious cases, and building a laboratory. capacity for rapid diagnosis of suspicious cases.
Although travel restrictions are not recommended by the WHO, we urge anyone who feels unwell during or after traveling to countries in West and Central Africa where the disease is endemic to report to a health professional.
It is possible for anyone who has come into close physical contact with a person infected with monkeypox to become infected. The virus is spread mainly through close physical contact, exposed to infectious ulcers, lesions or wounds on the skin or in the mouth or throat.
Smallpox is a disease that is new to our region, and we are working closely with WHO headquarters and other WHO regions to learn more about why it is now occurring in countries that are not endemic to smallpox. The situation is evolving rapidly and epidemiological research is still ongoing. So far, the WHO has assessed the overall risk to public health as moderate at both global and regional levels. We continue to monitor the situation closely and will keep you informed when new information arrives.
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