Don’t lose sight of monkeypox containment, says epidemiologist cmyeaton
Some glimmers of hope are emerging in the global fight against the monkeypox epidemic. Weekly case counts are trending down: 6,000 were reported from 15 to 21 August, an improvement over the 7,500 reported from 8 to 14 August. These gains are thanks to concerted efforts by public-health officials and advocates globally to extend vaccination, testing and educational messaging to men who have sex with men, the subpopulation currently at highest risk of infection.
The global public-health community must fortify its resolve to beat back monkeypox, just as it did SARS and Ebola. The virus has already infected tens of thousands of people and has footholds in communities around the world. Until this year, monkeypox circulated only in limited outbreaks in endemic regions of West and Central Africa. It should not be allowed to establish a permanent beachhead in new places now.
But vaccines are not the only option for breaking chains of transmission. Just as interventions such as contact tracing, quarantine and isolation brought SARS and Ebola under control, so too can they slow monkeypox. Epidemiologists in the United Kingdom reported in May that people exposed to the virus often could not be reached, a challenge that is probably common across countries. This should not deter contact-tracing efforts; even partial success will contribute to reducing transmission.
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