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More and more cases of monkey pox in Europe. The European Union is in talks with its member states to help distribute vaccines and medicines if needed.
- All over the world – apart from Africa – 177 cases of monkey pox have been confirmed. The virus appeared in 19 countries, including 13 European
- The European Union urges member states to closely monitor the spread of smallpox and to check the availability of vaccines against the disease
- There is only one vaccine against monkey pox in the EU, but so far it has only been authorized for smallpox
- There is also only one licensed preparation used to treat monkey pox, as well as smallpox and vaccinia
- More current information can be found on the Onet homepage.
The text comes from the POLITICO website. Author: Helen Collis.
The European Union calls for vigilance and responsiveness
The European disease control authority called on countries to be ready to track contacts as well as the use of vaccines, treatments and diagnostics as measures to combat the growing number of cases of monkey pox.
A further 36 cases were identified in the UK, bringing the total number of monkey pox infections to 56, according to Monday’s Health Safety Agency report. In the EU, since May 15, 67 cases of the disease have been identified in nine countries: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.
While numbers are still relatively low, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) recommended on Monday that countries should focus on rapidly identifying, managing, tracing contacts and reporting new cases of monkey pox.
In an official statement, the Center said countries should update their contact tracing mechanisms and diagnostic capabilities for orthopo-viruses (including the monkey pox virus) and review the availability of smallpox vaccines, antiviral drugs and personal protective equipment for healthcare professionals.
Although the virus that causes, among others, rash, fever and malaise, which usually goes away after about three weeks, can be serious for some groups, such as children, pregnant women and people with weaker immune systems.
Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, said she was “concerned” at the increasing number of cases of monkey pox in the EU and worldwide, adding that “while it is currently unlikely to spread to a wider population, the situation is developmental “.
Meanwhile, European infectious disease specialists are joining forces to best prepare the region for the rapidly increasing numbers of cases. The Commission, together with the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA), ECDC and the European Medicines Agency, is in talks with EU countries to make sure they can respond effectively to any outbreaks. The EU Health Security Committee was due to discuss the monkey pox topic at its meeting on Tuesday.
The EU is talking about vaccines
The most important topics today are vaccines and treatment. As part of its mandate, HERA, the EU’s newest body, “is ready to buy” medical countermeasures, as stated by Stefan De Keersmaecker, spokesperson for the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (SANTE) in an emailed statement.
De Keersmaecker stated that the main tasks include addressing the challenges of the availability and distribution of antivirals and vaccines, and increasing the stockpiling capacity to avoid shortages and implementation bottlenecks.
A representative from Bavarian Nordic, the manufacturer of the only monkey pox vaccine available in the EU, told POLITICO that he had received calls from “very many countries” wanting to buy Imvanex. The vaccine has been approved in the United States and Canada to protect against monkey pox and smallpox, but has so far only been approved for smallpox in the EU.
“We are talking to many countries that turn to us about procurement as the problem spreads and grows more and more day by day,” Rolf Sass Sørensen of Bavarian Nordic told POLITICO. He added that the company is in talks with HERA, the World Health Organization and “every other regulatory agency in the world”.
A spokesman for the European Medicines Agency noted in a statement sent by e-mail that “there are data on the prevention of monkey pox in animals” which show that “smallpox vaccines can also prevent disease in humans”.
1000 doses of Imvanex have already been given in the UK. The local health service vaccinates people who are at high risk. The country still has 3,5 thousand in stock. doses.
As with the vaccine, there is only one licensed preparation in the EU for the treatment of monkey pox, the EMA reported. SIGA’s Tecovirimat can treat smallpox, monkey and vaccinia – three infections caused by viruses belonging to the orthopoxvirus family. It can also be used to treat complications following smallpox vaccination.
Most cases in the EU and UK have so far been identified among men who have sex with men.
“As the virus spreads through close contact, we urge everyone to be aware of any unusual rashes or lesions and to contact a sexual health clinic if they have any symptoms,” said Susan Hopkins, UKHSA’s chief medical advisor.
Watch out for pets
The ECDC recommends that those who have experienced cases of monkey pox self-observe symptoms for 21 days after exposure. The UK takes a more stringent approach in this respect, recommending three weeks of isolation in this case.
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At the same time, ECDC calls for caution when dealing with pets.
“If there is human-to-animal transmission of the virus, and we know that the virus is spreading in animal populations, there is a risk that the disease could become endemic in Europe,” reads the ECDC statement.
The infectious disease office called on both veterinary services and public health authorities to work together to exercise extreme caution in handling pet animals exposed to the virus to prevent spread to wild animals.