Vaccines alone won’t end the monkeypox outbreak – at-risk individuals will have to take action too

Statement by Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe
With the WHO Director-General having declared the escalating global monkeypox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), all WHO Member States, whether they have reported cases or not, must now act with urgency, making the most of every opportunity to anticipate, control and stop the spread of a virus that we still have much to learn about.

The outbreak initially surfaced in the WHO European Region – encompassing 53 countries across Europe and central Asia – which continues to record the vast majority of cases, centred primarily among men who have sex with men. Solutions to tackle the outbreak must therefore also come from the Region, without stigma or discrimination towards affected communities and in close partnership with them.

Let’s lay out what we know – and what we need to do.

Monkeypox is, in general, a self-limiting, non-life-threatening disease in otherwise healthy people. The disease is better known in African countries, where it has been observed over decades and where deaths – 5 so far this year – have occasionally been reported, including among children and older people as well as people with underlying conditions.

Source: https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/26-07-2022-statement–vaccines-alone-won-t-end-the-monkeypox-outbreak—at-risk-individuals-will-have-to-take-action-too