The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday that Portugal is the ninth country in the world with the highest number of monkeypox cases, warning that the number of reported infections worldwide increased by 48% in the last week.
“As of July 22, the ten countries with the highest cumulative number of cases in the world are Spain (3125), the United States of America (2316), Germany (2268), the United Kingdom (2137), France (1453). , the Netherlands (712), Canada (615), Brazil (592), Portugal (588) and Italy (374),” says the WHO epidemiological update on monkeypox.
Together, these ten countries account for 89% of cases reported globally to date, according to the organization.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the WHO director for Europe said that since May 13, there have been about 12,000 probable or confirmed cases in European countries and territories, 8% of which have resulted in hospitalizations, and no deaths have been recorded. as a result of these infections.
Globally, the number of new cases reported weekly increased by 48% in the week of July 18-24 compared to the previous week, with a total of 16,016 cases of monkeypox virus infection in 75 countries and five deaths this year.
After the outbreak was declared an international public health emergency by WHO, Hans Kluge said, countries, whether they have detected cases or not, must “now act with urgency, using every opportunity to anticipate, control and prevent the spread of the virus.” the organization itself acknowledges that it still has much to learn.
“While we acknowledge uncertainty about how this outbreak will develop, we must respond to the epidemiology before us by focusing on the most common mode of transmission – skin-to-skin contact during sexual contact – and the groups most at risk. infections,” said the European representative of the WHO.
On Saturday, WHO declared the monkeypox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern with the highest alert level.
“We have an outbreak that is rapidly spreading around the world through new transmission routes that we know very little about and that meet the criteria for international health regulations,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference. , after a meeting of the Committee of Emergency Situations, which assessed the evolution of the disease in the world.
On the same day, the General Directorate of Health (DGS) announced that Portugal had already taken basic measures to combat monkeypox.
“It means nothing more than what is being done. All measures have been taken, even without this declaration” of a public health emergency of international concern issued on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO), he told Luce DGS. representative of the outbreak in Portugal.
Although Portugal is one of the countries in the world most affected by monkeypox, in terms of the number of cases diagnosed, “you can’t say we’re experiencing exponential growth or anything like that,” said doctor Margarida Tavares.
“What we are seeing is a constant weekly number and even a slight downward trend,” said Margarida Tavares, who is also director of the National Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV Program at DGS.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
