2023-04-15 03:22:20
A change in behavior in the population with the highest risk and group immunity are possible keys to reducing the ‘monkeypox’ outbreak
The smallpox epidemic of the monkey or monkeypoxtriggered last year, could decline due to two factors. On the one hand, the achievement of a herd immunity and, on the other, for a Behavior change among the population with more practices of risk of contracting said disease.
This is supported by a group of Belgian researchers who present their conclusions at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (Eccmid) which begins today, Saturday, in Copenhagen.
Until the outbreak of monkeypox similar behavior of this viral infection with sustained person-to-person transmission outside of Africa had not been documented in 2022.
The total number of registered cases Worldwide over the 85,000 cases, with the population of men who have sex with men as the one with the highest incidence. Cases increased rapidly from May 2022, only to start declining a few months later.
The reasons why the outbreak subsided are not clear. The investigator Christophe Van Dyckfrom the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium, argues that the rapid increase in cases in May 2022 was likely caused by “efficient viral transmission during sexual contact between people with high partner turnover in a dense and geographically widespread network.” sexual”.
He insufficient knowledge of the diseaseas well as asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission, may have favored its spread, according to those responsible for this study.
The subsequent decline of the epidemic after July 2022 remains insufficiently explained. The starting hypotheses that are posed are a change in behavior in the population at risk and the acquisition of immunity induced by vaccination or infection.
Decrease in cases before vaccination
“However, in most countries, including Belgium, the decline in cases of monkeypox it had already started before a substantial proportion of the population at risk was vaccinated,” so Van Dijk and his team hypothesized that the epidemic subsided due to a change in the behavior of the population at risk.
Santiago Melnhead of the Virology Service of the Hospital Universitario Central de Asturias (HUCA) highlights, when interpreting the conclusions of this study, the fact that it is a “very showy” infection, in the sense that it manifests with striking symptoms that do not invite sexual intercourse.
To learn more, they used two data sets collected at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in 2022. All participants gave their informed consent. The first data set came from a questionnaire that people completed with monkeypox at the time of diagnosis.
Continue the risk
From the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC for its acronym in English) its director, Andrea Ammon, has reported that, indeed, “the number of cases has decreased a lot since the peak in July”, despite It has warned that “there is a risk of an increase in the upcoming spring and summer season due to the festivities and increased holiday travel.”
According to the latest ECDC record, from May 16, 2022 to April 4, 2023, 21,170 cases of monkeypox have been reported in 29 countries of the European Union. and the European Economic Area, including six deaths.
Ammon recalled that “early diagnosis, isolation, partner notification and contact tracing remain essential for effective control of this outbreak and must be supported by appropriate vaccination and behavior change strategies.”
According to the criteria of
Know more
#reasons #explain #disappearance #monkeypox