Their findings will improve future diagnosis, help to slow the spread of infection and help the international community prioritise the limited global supply of monkeypox vaccines and treatments to communities most at risk.
A case series which is the result of an international collaboration across 16 countries is published today (21 July 2022) in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). The study, led by researchers at Queen Mary University of London, identifies new clinical symptoms of monkeypox infection, which will aid future diagnosis and help to slow the spread of infection. It was carried out in response to the emerging global health threat and is the largest case study series to date, reporting on 528 confirmed infections at 43 sites between 27 April and 24 June 2022.
The current spread of the virus disproportionately affects gay and bisexual men, with 98% of infected persons from this group. Although sexual closeness is the most likely route of transmission in most of these cases, researchers stress that the virus can be transmitted by any close physical contact through large respiratory droplets and potentially through clothing and other surfaces.
