What you should to know about monkeypox

Monkeypox, a smallpox-related virus endemic to parts of Central and West Africa, has now emerged in 74 countries, with nearly 2,900 confirmed cases in the US.

The growing number prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare monkeypox a global health emergency, as it did for COVID-19 in 2020.

With more than 16,800 cases globally, some scientists are calling the monkeypox outbreak a pandemic, albeit with a far lower mortality rate than the COVID-19 pandemic.

The disease often starts with fever, chills, headache, fatigue, muscle aches, and swollen lymph nodes—symptoms similar to those of many other illnesses. But monkeypox is marked by raised, pus-filled blisters that dot the skin and is transmitted through direct exposure to the rash, scabs, or bodily fluids, including respiratory droplets.

It is also transmitted by close physical contact with items that touched the rash and are contaminated with virus, such as clothing and bedding.

“This is a known disease presenting in places where it’s not usually found, and in a way that was not immediately raising suspicion for monkeypox,” says Felicia Nutter, assistant professor at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University who specializes in wildlife health and infectious disease ecology and zoonoses.

“There has been testing and diagnosis, and also activation of public health measures to be able to access vaccine stockpiles. We need much more widespread testing and vaccination to address this disease.”

Nutter has worked as a wildlife veterinarian in Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo and is currently part of the STOP Spillover project with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Here, she explains what you should know about the current monkeypox outbreak, including how it’s transmitted and who is at risk:

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