What Does the Monkeypox Outbreak Mean to Me?

The ongoing monkeypox outbreak has been declared a public health emergency of international concern, but what does it mean to people following the COVID-19 pandemic experience?

On July 23, 2022, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated, "We have an outbreak that has spread around the world rapidly, through new modes of transmission about which we understand too little."

Opponents of the WHO declaration have pointed out that monkeypox virus (MPXV) cases are concentrated in a few countries in Europe and the USA.

Between early May and August 15, 2022, there have been about 39,000 confirmed monkeypox cases and 12 related fatalities in more than 80 countries, nearly all of which are not endemic for the disease.

And in the USA, the U.S. CDC confirmed 11,890 total monkeypox/orthopoxvirus cases as of August 15, 2022.

This CDC data represents about 90% growth in ten days since the U.S. government declared a monkeypox public health emergency on August 5, 2022.

But why is the USA the leader?

A previous retrospective analysis by The Institute Pasteur in 2022 indicates smallpox under-vaccinations may be the cause.

'We reanalyzed monkeypox historical data to assess (MPXV) epidemic potential.... we found that low population immunity, in the range of 10-25%, may allow one infected individual to cause 1.10-2.40 new cases and initiate an epidemic.'

'This is the status of many western countries, where smallpox vaccination stopped in 1980 or earlier, and immunity continued to decline, leaving the current population vulnerable to a monkeypox pandemic.'

To increase access to vaccines, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) is making a total of 1.1 million vials of Bavarian Nordic's Jynneos, an FDA-licensed vaccine indicated for the prevention of smallpox and monkeypox, available for free throughout the USA.

And to spread out the benefits of these vaccines, the U.S. FDA announced on August 9, 2022, an alternative dosing approach that allows healthcare providers to use the vaccine from one vial to protect five people when administered intradermally.

This approach enables ASPR to increase the number of doses that can be made available to adults by up to fivefold.

However, as of August 12, 2022, ASPR had only distributed 634,21 Jynneos doses.

To potentially increase access, the FDA recently confirmed that the ACAM2000 smallpox could be used against monkeypox under FDA's Expanded Access Investigational New Drug mechanism, which requires informed consent.

On July 28, 2022, the U.S. CDC confirmed it would work with health departments requesting ACAM2000 to ensure that individuals are fully informed of the benefits and the risks before receiving the vaccine due to significant side effects.

Until there is greater access to vaccines, the U.S. CDC recently recommended that 'people infected with the MPXV remain isolated for the duration of their illness.'

Additional monkeypox vaccine news is posted at PrecisionVaccinations.com/Monkeypox.