The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the monkeypox outbreak an “emergency of international concern” in more than 50 countries. This was announced by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at a press conference in Geneva on Saturday.
He called out the highest alert level that can be imposed in the event of a health threat. However, the classification has no direct practical implications. It is intended to shake up governments so that they adopt measures to contain the disease. But each country decides for itself what to do. Doctors and clinics should be sensitized to take protective measures in suspected cases and to inform the population how they can protect themselves from infection.
There are almost 2,300 cases in Germany
Tedros cited the number of more than 16,000 confirmed cases in more than 60 countries, many of which previously had virtually no monkeypox cases. There were over 240 cases in six African countries where the virus has previously infected people. In Germany, the Robert Koch Institute reported almost 2,300 cases on Friday.
A committee of independent experts had previously failed to agree on a joint recommendation on whether to declare an emergency. The English abbreviation for an emergency is PHEIC. This stands for “Public Health Emergency of International Concern”.
Monkeypox infection can cause skin rash, swollen lymph nodes, genital and anal inflammation, fever, chills, and muscle pain. The disease is usually not fatal.