That marks a significant departure from the disease’s typical pattern of spread in central and western Africa, where people are mainly infected by animals like wild rodents and primates. Last week, a top adviser to WHO said the monkeypox outbreak in Europe, U.S., Israel, Australia and beyond was likely linked to sex at two recent raves in Spain and Belgium. 'You may have these lesions for two to four weeks (and) they may not be visible to others, but you may still be infectious,' she said. RELATED: Smallpox vaccine Jynneos can prevent monkeypox, CDC says
She also warned that among the current cases, there is a higher proportion of people with lesions that are more concentrated in the genital region and sometimes nearly impossible to see. Monkeypox is known to spread when there is close physical contact with an infected person, their clothing or bedsheets. Lewis said it’s unknown whether monkeypox is being transmitted by sex or just the close contact between people engaging in sexual activity and described the threat to the general population as 'low.' Last week, WHO said 23 countries that haven’t previously had monkeypox have now reported more than 250 cases. Mike Cirigliano discusses the rare virus. Massachusetts reported a case of monkeypox in a man who recently traveled to Canada on May 18, 2022. What is monkeypox and what are the symptoms?
