As the World Health organisation (WHO) convenes an emergency committee to determine if the expanding monkeypox outbreak should be considered a global health emergency, it is also looking into changing its name. However, there is an increasing narrative in the media and among many scientists that are trying to link the present global outbreak to Africa or West Africa, or Nigeria," scientists said.
They said that a nomenclature that is neutral, non-discriminatory, and non-stigmatising will be more appropriate for the global health community.Scientists have proposed a new way to name the viral outbreak under clades 1, 2, and 3, in order of detection. A practical and neutral system of nomenclature allows efficient communication without the risk of further misconceptions, discrimination, and stigmatisation," the group said in its paper. These include viral genomes from Western Africa, Central African, and localized spillover events in global north countries and from both human and non-human hosts.
They have proposed clade 1 to be of the Congo Basin clade, and clades 2 and 3 correspond to the prior “West African clade”.
"The entire epidemic of MPXV regardless of the location, needs to be halted, not just this Northern hemisphere outbreak. In a paper, the group pointed out the continuous use of photos of African patients to depict pox lesions in the mainstream media.
The WHO lists the virus under two distinct strains: the Central African (Congo Basin) clade and the West African clade."Although the origin of the new global outbreak is still unknown, there is growing evidence that the most likely scenario is that cross-continent, cryptic human transmission has been ongoing for longer than previously thought. The development comes amid calls from scientists for a "non-discriminatory and non-stigmatizing" name.
WHO chief Dr. We will make announcements about the new names as soon as possible," he said.scientists from Africa and around the world called for changing the name. "WHO is also working with partners and experts from around the world on changing the name of #monkeypox virus, its clades, and the disease it causes. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that it is working on the matter.We don’t want to wait until the situation is out of control to start calling the emergency committee,” Dr. Ibrahima Soce Fall, WHO’s emergencies director for Africa said. But it doesn’t mean that we are going straight to a public health emergency of international concern. Declaring monkeypox to be an international health emergency would give it the same designation as the Covid-19 pandemic and mean that WHO considers the normally rare disease a continuing threat to countries globally.
“With the advice from the emergency committee, we can be in a better position to control the situation.It is also important that public health workers are able to identify and care for patients. WHO is working to support Member States with surveillance, preparedness and outbreak response activities for monkeypox in affected countries. Additional cases are being investigated. It is essential that no one stigmatize anyone who is affected by this event. What is most important right now is that we raise awareness about monkeypox among people who are most at risk of infection and provide advice on how to limit further spread between people. At the present time (as of May 2022) there is no clear link between the cases reported and travel from endemic countries and no link with infected animals.
We understand that this outbreak is concerning for many, especially people whose loved ones have been affected.
Studies are underway in affected countries to determine the source of infection of each identified case, and actions to provide medical care and limit further spread. Several countries where monkeypox is not endemic have reported cases in May 2022. For the latest information, please see here.
With the exception of cases sporadically reported in travellers from endemic countries, cases in non- endemic areas that are not linked to travel from endemic countries are not typical. As of 19 May 2022, cases are being reported from over 10 countries in non-endemic areas.
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