This year, nearly 5,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in humans worldwide. In more than 40 countries outside Africa, where monkey pox was virtually unknown until May, there were 3,308 cases on Wednesday, according to data from the US health authority CDC. The World Health Organization (WHO) has convened a monkeypox emergency committee. On Thursday, he began his deliberations in Geneva.
The experts represented on the Emergency Committee must assess whether it is an “emergency of international concern”, which corresponds to the highest alert level WHO can impose. In Geneva, the committee, consisting of a dozen experts from around the world, was not expected to come up with a recommendation on Thursday. “The commission is expected to issue a statement in the coming days,” the WHO said.
The WHO usually follows the recommendation of the experts. This would have no practical impact, but it should wake up all countries to watch out for cases and take their own precautions to contain the spread.
Almost all cases are men
According to World Health Organization (WHO) statistics, there are about 1,600 suspected or confirmed cases in eight African countries, many of which have had such outbreaks for years. Most cases outside Africa were reported in 29 countries in the WHO Europe region: a total of 2,746, as reported by the EU Health Agency ECDC and the WHO Regional Office for Europe. As the data shows, almost all confirmed cases are male. About 44 percent of those affected were between the ages of 31 and 40. No deaths have been reported yet.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
