Monkeypox Virus: WHO calls for emergency meeting
By Lokmat English Desk | Published: May 20, 2022 08:56 PM2022-05-20T20:56:17+5:302022-05-20T20:56:17+5:30
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The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said it is holding daily monkeypox meetings as the virus continues to spread worldwide.
A spokesperson for the organisation told The Independent it is convening “a number of meetings related to monkeypox on a daily basis” involving experts from affected countries, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and technical advisory groups.
This includes a meeting on Friday involving the WHO Strategic and Technical Advisory Group on Infectious Hazards with Pandemic and Endemic Potential (STAG IH).
The outbreak is now said to be the “largest and most widespread ever seen in Europe”, where infections have surpassed 100.
Cases have now been confirmed in countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, France and Italy and Germany.
Fabian Leendertz, from the Robert Koch Institute, described the outbreak as an “epidemic” but said it was “unlikely” to last long.
There are several suspected cases of monkeypox in the Netherlands, ANP news agency is reporting, quoting RIVM – the Dutch institute for health. More than 100 cases of monkeypox have been reported in Europe, with German officials describing the outbreak as the largest ever in the region. Cases have now been confirmed in countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, France, the United States and Australia.
