Monkeypox is a disease caused by the monkeypox virus, a pathogen closely related to variola virus, which causes smallpox. Monkeypox and smallpox infections trigger similar symptoms, but monkeypox tends to be far milder by comparison.
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00:00Since early May, monkeypox has been spreading at unprecedented levels in
00:04countries where the disease rarely occurs. But what is monkeypox and what
00:10should you know about the viral infection? The monkeypox virus is closely
00:14related to the virus that causes smallpox, although it causes milder disease than
00:19its cousin and is far less contagious. The virus was first discovered in 1958
00:25when lab monkeys at a research institute in Copenhagen caught the virus. The
00:30disease was named monkeypox for this reason, even though later on researchers
00:35realized that rodents, not monkeys, likely serve as the natural reservoir for the
00:39virus in the wild. The first human case of monkeypox was reported in 1970 in the
00:45Democratic Republic of the Congo and it wasn't until 2003 that any human cases
00:51were reported outside of Africa. In general, monkeypox regularly circulates
00:55in roughly a dozen Central and West African countries. And in the last few
01:00decades, only sporadic cases and small outbreaks have cropped up in other
01:03countries, including the US, UK, Israel, and Singapore. That's what makes the 2022
01:10outbreak so unusual. As of July 23rd, when the World Health Organization declared the
01:16outbreak a public health emergency. More than 16,000 cases of monkeypox had been
01:21detected in 75 countries and territories, and those numbers continue to grow even
01:27now. Symptoms of monkeypox infection include fever, headaches, muscle aches,
01:32fatigue, and swollen lymph nodes, although not everyone in the current outbreak has
01:37developed these flu-like symptoms. The infection is best known for causing skin
01:41rashes that often appear on the face, oral cavity, palms of the hands, and soles of
01:46the feet. And in the current outbreak, the rashes have commonly developed around the
01:50genitals and anus. These rashes typically start out as discolored patches of skin
01:55and then form into raised bumps, blisters, and large pus-filled pimples that
02:00eventually scab over and fall off. During the current outbreak, some people have had
02:04rashes in different stages of progression at the same body site. The type of
02:09monkeypox driving the outbreak, called the West African clade, is rarely fatal. Its
02:15case fatality rate is estimated between 1% and 3.5%. In most cases, infected
02:21people recover without any treatment and their symptoms last about two to four
02:25weeks. That said, children younger than eight, people with weakened immune systems
02:29or a history of eczema, and people who are pregnant or breastfeeding face a greater
02:34chance of becoming severely ill from the infection. Monkeypox can spread from animals,
02:39to humans, when people come into contact with the blood, bodily fluids, rashes, or
02:43sores of infected animals. People can also catch the virus if they're scratched or
02:48bitten by an infected animal, or if they consume undercooked meat or use products
02:53made from infected animals. Monkeypox can spread from person to person when people come into direct
03:07contact with an infected person's rashes, scabs, or bodily fluids, including pus, mucus, and saliva,
03:13or with materials contaminated with these bodily fluids. Direct contact here may mean face-to-face, skin-to-skin,
03:21mouth-to-mouth, or mouth-to-skin contact. The virus can also pass through the placenta in
03:26pregnant people and infect the developing fetus. In addition, it can sometimes spread via respiratory
03:32droplets, meaning small drops of saliva and mucus that are expelled from the mouth of an infected
03:36person and can be inhaled by people nearby. So far, the 2022 outbreak has heavily impacted men who have
03:44sex with men, and there's been disinformation circulating that suggests monkeypox only spreads
03:49through sexual intercourse. Monkeypox can definitely spread through sexual activities due to the close
03:54physical contact involved, but the virus can also spread during non-sexual close contact.
04:00In addition, there's no evidence that the virus spreads through semen or vaginal fluids.
04:04In short, men who have sex with men are no more prone to monkeypox infection than anyone else.
04:09Anyone who has close physical contact of any kind with someone who has monkeypox is at risk,
04:15regardless of who they are, what they do, who they have sex with, or any other factor.
04:20For more information on how to prevent the spread of monkeypox, and to learn about what treatments and
04:25vaccines are available, visit LiveScience.com. You can find the link in the description below.