Could monkeypox be the next West Nile virus? –

Monkeypox could become endemic in the United States, just as the West Nile virus did after crossing into the wild mosquito population two decades ago, warns an expert.

Dr. Bobbi Pritt, a pathologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, told DailyMail.com that the main similarity between the diseases is that both spread under the radar before they were discovered.

However, he said, fighting monkeypox is probably much easier because it’s mainly spread through sexual contact with contagious skin lesions, while the other is “randomly” transmitted by mosquitoes.

West Nile virus (WNV) became endemic to the United States just a year after its arrival and is now the leading cause of mosquito-borne illness in the country, with tens of thousands of cases per year.

Eight out of 10 people infected with the virus will have no symptoms, but a fifth of those who do will develop fever, headache, and vomiting, while one in 150 may develop encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain. About 70 deaths occur every 12 months due to the disease.

European health leaders have warned that monkeypox could also decline in the animal population, although the risk remains “very low”. He was at risk of contracting tropical disease when he infected more than 40 prairie dogs in 2003, but the epidemic eventually died out.

The warning comes after America recorded 28 more cases of monkeypox this weekend, with 23 states Juneteenth and Washington DC New Jersey, Indiana and Missouri being the last states to detect the disease this weekend. The number has now reached 142, but no deaths have been recorded in the US or other countries currently facing an epidemic.

The map above shows the states that have detected West Nile virus this year. Its incidence is per 100,000 people. Hawaii has not yet reported the incidence of the disease

The map above shows states that have reported West Nile virus in humans (dark green) and other animals (light green) since 2021. It shows that the virus is now in every state in the country. Hawaii has not yet reported the number of cases

Noting that monkeypox can occur in the United States and WNV, Pritt said, “I hesitate to say that monkeypox is still endemic, although it certainly has this potential.” said.

“However, it will be easier to prevent the spread of monkeypox.

“There are so many different transmission modes. WNV is spread through mosquito bites and is actually quite random. But monkeypox is most commonly spread through sexual contact, currently mainly among men who have sex with men, but can reach other populations as well.

This can be stopped with safe sex.

“There is a better chance of stopping it than WNV. You can only really stop at WNV by wearing insect repellent.

It took US health chiefs about two weeks to diagnose the first case of monkeypox in Massachusetts after standard Pap smear tests failed to detect other infections. They decided to test the patient for the tropical virus, but only after noticing warnings from Europe – led by the UK – about the outbreak there.

For comparison, an outbreak of WNV was recorded in New York in late August after eight previously healthy people were hit by encephalitis who lived within 15 miles of each other.

The tropical disease was known for decades after it was first spotted in northern Uganda’s West Nile Region in 1937.

Since then, it has begun to appear in many other countries on the continent, parts of Asia, and even Romania, Europe.

The disease arrived in the United States in 1999 on an expedition from the Middle East, probably where Israel was also experiencing an epidemic at the time. It is unclear whether these were geese or another bird imported or arrived via mosquitoes on the back of a ship.

Health officials began to suspect its existence when they saw obscene cases in Queens in late August. Many birds were also seen falling ill from a virus with a high mortality rate.

WNV is transmitted from mosquitoes to humans and birds after the insect disease has been transmitted from another infected animal, which may very well be a sick bird.

The following year, they discovered another outbreak of the disease, and within three years it had been registered in 44 states.

It also caused a major outbreak in 2002 when a total of 4,100 cases were discovered, including more than 2,000 people with encephalitis. There were also 284 deaths.

However, Pritt said the actual number of cases is in the tens of thousands, as many people who contract the virus have no symptoms.

Other experts have also warned that Monkeypox could mimic WNV to settle in the country.

Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease specialist at Johns Hopkins in Maryland, previously shared: “It was planted in mosquito populations and … bird populations and was able to establish itself,” he told CNN.

But he also warned that this was far from an inevitable outcome for Monkeypox, noting that “2003 was a good opportunity to make that happen,” but it wasn’t.

Originating from West Africa, Monkeypox was first seen in Europe in May, with cases related to unprotected sex during mass demonstrations in Spain and Belgium.

It was first discovered a few weeks later in the United States in a person who had just returned from Canada, but the World Health Organization says it may have spread years ago.

Authorities are urging gay and bisexual men to be alert for new lesions, rashes or crusting and to seek a sexual health clinic.

Most infections occur among gay and bisexual men and are related to international travel, including Europe.

However, an increasing number of cases are currently being detected that are not related to other infections or international travel, suggesting that the virus is spreading under the radar in the country.

After New Jersey registered the first suspected case of monkeypox in Jersey City yesterday, a sample is now being sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for approval.

The patient was told to self-isolate at home and has now been contacted.

They said on Instagram: “The New Jersey Department of Health has confirmed the first case of monkeypox in Jersey City. Our paramedics are working closely with the CDC.

“The local health department is doing contact tracing to identify people who may have been exposed to the individual.

“Most New Jersey residents are not at risk of monkeypox infection.”

Globally, the CDC has a total of 2,525 cases in 37 different countries, with the UK leading with 574 and Spain second with 497 confirmed cases of the virus.

The medical literature states that people infected with monkeypox develop flu-like symptoms within the first 21 days after contracting the virus, followed by a rash on the face before spreading to the rest of the body.

However, this is seldom seen in the current outbreak, instead patients develop a rash on the genitals before flu-like symptoms develop.

Dr. “The disease is not spread through casual conversation, walking past others at a grocery store, or touching things like doorknobs,” said Rochelle Walensky, chair of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“All the cases we’ve seen so far in this outbreak involve direct contact.”