There is currently a worldwide monkeypox outbreak and it has already led to the deaths of about 75 Africans. The effects of monkeypox include fever, fatigue, lesions, and more. New York City has the most cases of monkeypox in the U.S. with over 1,300 infected. California comes in second with nearly 800 cases. The New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan stated that “this outbreak must be met with urgency, action, and resources, both nationally and globally, and this declaration of a public health emergency reflects the seriousness of the moment.” The New York Health Department said that monkeypox is an “imminent threat to public health.”
Monkeypox was quite the unknown disease before this epidemic. In fact, the surge in cases only happened a few weeks ago. The epidemic started in May as a small issue before turning into the serious threat it is today. At the time, there were only nine cases of it in the U.S. The monkeypox outbreak first started in Africa, which is where it originated from. For the past decades, monkeypox was considered rare and was mainly found in the central and western parts of Africa. Now it has spread to North America and even Europe. There have been over 22,000 cases in 80 countries of the virus.
Most of the monkeypox cases were found with men that has sex with other men. The Spain health ministry reported, stating that around 3,500 of the over 4,000 cases of the virus were made up of men that had sex with other men. The remaining cases were made up of other men, with only a few women as well. The virus spreads through close skin-to-skin contact as well as clothing, towels, and bedding. Luckily for us, monkeypox is rarely fatal and most people that have been diagnosed with it have recovered within weeks. However, monkeypox contains lesions and blisters which can be very painful.
Monkeypox was quite the unknown disease before this epidemic. In fact, the surge in cases only happened a few weeks ago. The epidemic started in May as a small issue before turning into the serious threat it is today. At the time, there were only nine cases of it in the U.S. The monkeypox outbreak first started in Africa, which is where it originated from. For the past decades, monkeypox was considered rare and was mainly found in the central and western parts of Africa. Now it has spread to North America and even Europe. There have been over 22,000 cases in 80 countries of the virus.
Most of the monkeypox cases were found with men that has sex with other men. The Spain health ministry reported, stating that around 3,500 of the over 4,000 cases of the virus were made up of men that had sex with other men. The remaining cases were made up of other men, with only a few women as well. The virus spreads through close skin-to-skin contact as well as clothing, towels, and bedding. Luckily for us, monkeypox is rarely fatal and most people that have been diagnosed with it have recovered within weeks. However, monkeypox contains lesions and blisters which can be very painful.
