Monkey threat to the world has been upgraded to “moderate” by world health officials, with tropical viruses spreading in several countries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that the outbreak of these cases has been even more alarming because it is the first time groups have been reported simultaneously in different locations and without any known connection with Africa, where the virus is a pandemic.
So far the outbreak, which was first detected in early May, has spread to 24 countries and has been detected in 106 British, most of them men having sex with men. The WHO said the figures were ‘likely to be poor’.
There is growing concern that the virus will infect wildlife and never be eradicated. That too can increase the risk of monkey mutilation.
The WHO said the public health risk of the virus could ‘be high’ if it spread to more vulnerable groups that are at greater risk of becoming seriously ill, including young children and people with immunodeficiency.
The ‘sudden appearance’ and ‘geographical scope’ of cases indicate the spread of the virus in humans – which spreads through the skin to the skin and droplets of infected people – continues, the WHO said.
WHO officials have also warned of an increase in monkey infections suggesting that the virus “may have been circulating undetected for several weeks or more”.
British health officials have warned that music festivals could be the most widespread monkey events this summer, including the two-day Mighty Hoopla event in London because it will ‘attract a lot of wonderful people’.
It comes as British government advisers warned that hamsters, rabbits and other rats owned by infected patients should be excluded for three weeks.
The Human Veterinary and Human Needs Monitoring Group (HAIR) said these animals were at greater risk of contracting the virus, and could spread to wildlife.
Experts fear that if the virus were transmitted to wildlife then it would be widespread and difficult to eradicate, as is the case in western and central Africa.
In a risk assessment published yesterday, the WHO warned that its “moderate” level could be pushed to “high” if the virus “took advantage of the opportunity to identify itself as a human pathogen” and spread to vulnerable groups.
The reported cases so far have been low but there is a risk of the virus having a ‘significant health impact’ if it spreads to vulnerable people, including children and people with impaired immunity, such as some HIV patients, who ‘may being at greater risk of serious illness’.
The WHO warned that there was a ‘significant risk’ of the spread of the virus, although skin-to-skin contact between family and sexual partners, as well as exposure to infected materials, such as utensils, bedding and clothing.
“However, for now, the risk to the public appears to be minimal,” the agency said.
It warned that a ‘large part’ of people are at risk of being attacked by monkeys due to the suspension of the smallpox vaccination program.
In the UK, young people were given this jab regularly until four decades ago, near the point where the virus was eradicated. Because smallpox and monkeys are very similar, those who received the jab, who are now at least 50 years old, are considered to be immune to the surrounding stress.
There is a ‘possible risk’ for health workers treating a person infected with the virus if they do not wear personal protective equipment (PPE) to prevent infection.
No monkey case has been reported among doctors in the current outbreak, the WHO said. But an NHS staff member became infected in 2018 after treating a person infected with the virus.
In its report, the WHO also warned that people who have recently had many sexual partners – either in the area where they live or abroad – could be ‘at risk’ of having a monkey.
It said health officials should reach out to vulnerable communities, which ‘at this time’ include men who have sex with men and their loved ones.
The WHO said it would be “reasonable” for people to reduce the number of partners they have in the early stages of the outbreak.
It comes as Dr Will Nutland, from the London School of Sanitation and Tropical Medicine, warned that celebrations could provoke the spread of the virus.
The explosions were followed up to a gay sauna in Madrid, the prestigious Gran Canaria Festival attended by 80,000 people and Darklands – Belgium’s largest witches festival.
Dr. Nutland organized the LGBTQ + community network about the dangers of monkeys, as part of his responsibilities as co-founder of Prepster, a volunteer group of HIV prevention activists in London.
The doctor warned that it could spread to Mighty Hoopla in Brockwell Park, south London, on Friday and Saturday.
He told the Sunday Telegraph that the pop festival would ‘attract a lot of people’.
A Mighty Hoopla spokesman said they ‘remained committed to working in accordance with the government’s health guidelines on public safety at the events’.
Earlier this month, Dr Hans Kluge, regional director for Europe at the World Health Organization, said he was concerned about ‘crowd gatherings, celebrations and banquets’, which could accelerate the spread of the disease.
He said the identified cases are ‘among those who engage in sex’, and cause unexplained symptoms.
Mateo Prochazka, a pathologist from UKHSA, said it was important for people not to think that the monkey was just a threat to the LGBTQ + community.
He told the BBC that it could spread to anyone through close contact – including touching objects used by an infected person, such as cuttings or their clothes.
So far 24 countries have confirmed cases of monkeys, with Spain, Britain and Portugal having the highest number of infections.
Sylvie Briand, head of the outbreak and disease prevention and preparedness at the WHO, last week warned that reported infections could be “iceberg” and “more cases” could go undiagnosed.
In a report, the WHO stated that ‘there is a high probability’ that even more countries will detect infections.
But it is said that states should not pass any travel-related restrictions, such as those imposed on the Covid disaster, ‘according to the information available at the moment’.
In the UK, 106 cases have been identified. More than 100 infections have entered the UK, while Scotland has seen three and Northern Ireland and Wales have detected one each.
Teams from the UK Health Safety Agency communicate with people at high risk of confirmed cases and advise them to stay away from home for three weeks and avoid contact with children.
Both cases certified by close people are given the Imvanex vaccine to create immunizations of immunized individuals near the proven case to reduce the spread of the disease.
The strategy, known as the ring vaccine, has been used in previous monkey blasts and is also being implemented in some EU countries.