The World Health Organization on Tuesday deemed “encouraging” the signs of a slowdown in the epidemic of monkeypox in Europe which go “in the right direction”, calling for further strengthening of the efforts undertaken.
The World Health Organization on Tuesday deemed “encouraging” the signs of a slowdown in the epidemic of monkeypox in Europe which go “in the right direction”, calling for further strengthening of the efforts undertaken. “There are some encouraging early signs, such as those seen in France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, the UK and other countries, that the epidemic may be slowing down,” said the regional director for Europe. of the WHO, Hans Kluge, during a press conference. “It’s going in the right direction,” he said. However, “to make progress towards elimination in our region, we must urgently scale up our efforts.”
In the 53 countries of the region, which includes Russia and countries in Central Asia, more than 22,000 cases have been recorded in 43 countries, accounting for more than a third of the global number of infections. Last week, the WHO reported a 21% reduction in new cases worldwide after four consecutive weeks of increases.
To eliminate the circulation of the virus in Europe, the WHO recommends maintaining surveillance measures, targeted vaccination, identification of contact cases and engagement with the male homosexual community, where the virus mainly circulates. Mr Kluge cited the example of Portugal, where “in the absence of a full-fledged vaccination campaign, we managed to curb the increase in the number of cases through behavioral change and engagement with communities”.