CDC Urges Use of Face Masks Against Monkeypox Amid Rising Number of Cases

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has raised monkeypox alert to level 2 and recommends the use of face masks to combat the rising number of cases in the country.

The health agency urges the use of masks as well as other health measures similar to what has been done to curb the spread of the coronavirus in fighting off the new outbreak in the nation. Since March, the disease has quickly and silently spread around the globe but is believed to be less severe than COVID-19.

Face Masks Against Monkeypox

The symptoms of monkeypox begin as relatively flu-like but soon expand to the swelling of lymph nodes and a rash across an individual's body and face. Ultimately, painful lesions form on rash areas, leaving severe scarring.

The CDC wrote in its raised alert that cases of monkeypox have already been reported in various regions worldwide, including Europe, North America, South America, Africa, Asia, and Australia. The agency added that some cases were reported among men who "have sex with men." Authorities also noted that some cases were reported in people who live in the same household as an infected person, as per Fox News.

Dr. Amesh Adalja said that the virus may have gone undetected in Western countries under the guise of a sexually transmitted infection (STI). This thinking comes as there are a number of STIs that have similar symptoms to monkeypox.

In a statement, the health professional said that what most likely happened was that an endemic infectious disease from Africa found its way into a social and sexual network. It was then greatly aided by major amplification events, such as raves in Belgium, to disseminate around the world.

According to the Associated Press, the situation comes as British health officials reported 77 more monkeypox cases on Monday, bringing the total to more than 300 across the country. The UK has the biggest identified outbreak of the disease beyond Africa to date. The vast majority of the infections were found in gay and bisexual men.

Fighting Against the Disease

Health officials have warned that anyone, regardless of their sexual orientation, is at risk of getting infected if they are in close contact with a patient, their clothing, or their bed sheets. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Sunday said that more than two dozen countries that have not previously identified monkeypox cases reported a total of 780 infections.

The number represents a jump of more than 200% since late May but no deaths related to monkeypox have yet to be identified outside of Africa. The UN health agency said that most cases in Europe and elsewhere have been spotted in sexual health clinics and "have involved mainly, but not exclusively, men who have sex with men."

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that so far this year, there have been more than 1,400 monkeypox cases and 63 deaths in four countries where the virus is endemic. This includes Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Congo, and Nigeria.

The United States has responded to the outbreak by securing 1,200 doses of vaccine to fight the illness that has been offered, said White House senior director for global health security and biodefense, Dr. Raj Panjabi. The official said the administration wanted to protect people with high-risk exposures by giving them rapid access to vaccines, CNN reported.