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The symptoms of monkeypox are similar to those of the flu and there are lesions on the skin.
Photo: Pablo Blazquez/Getty Images
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this Friday reported two cases of monkeypox in childrenthat are currently being treated.
Health officials said one of the unidentified children is from California, while the other is not a resident of the United States. They are currently in good health, the agency said.
Monkeypox, with flu-like symptoms and skin lesions, has spread widely among men who have had sex with men. The origin of the disease is said to be in countries in West and Central Africa, where it is endemic and spreads mainly through close contact, Reuters pointed out.
So far in 2022 more than 14,000 cases of monkeypox in more than 60 countries and five deaths on the African continent.
In a conference call put together by Reuters, Dr. Jennifer McQuiston, deputy director of the CDC’s division of pathology and pathogens, said it’s no surprise that pediatric cases of monkeypox have surfaced.
“To date, there is no evidence that this virus is spreading outside of the communities of gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with mensaid McQuiston.
She noted that 99% of the 2,891 confirmed cases of monkeypox in the United States involve sex with other men, but there have also been a handful of transgender women and men who have been identified.
White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha, for his part, said on the same call The government has shipped 300,000 doses of the new monkeypox vaccine and is working to speed up a delivery of a further 786,000 doses from Denmark.
He added that enough vaccine is available to give the first dose of the vaccine to more than half of the eligible population in New York City and more than 70% of the eligible population in Washington DC.
Jha noted that the US is still evaluating whether the monkeypox outbreak should be declared a public health emergency and is looking at ways the response could be improved.
The mortality rate in previous outbreaks of the current strain in Africa has been around 1%.but the outbreak has so far been less deadly in non-endemic countries, although several patients reported being hospitalized for severe pain.
With information from Reuters
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