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Wednesday, 18 December 2024
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U.S. is at risk of losing control of monkeypox outbreak
A file photo from 2001 shows a colored electron-microscopic capture of the monkeypox virus.(Photo: RKI Robert Koch Institute/AFP/File/Andrea MAENNEL, Andrea SCHNARTENDORFF)

Medical experts are warning that the United States is at risk of losing control of the monkeypox outbreak due to sluggish government response, The Hill has reported.

The report said on Sunday (July 3), U.S. President Joe Biden's administration "has been too slow to respond to the monkeypox outbreak," which "mirrors the worst parts of the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.”

The report said, quoting infectious disease experts and public health advocates, he botched COVID-19 response included "severely limited testing and a sluggish rollout of vaccines, leading to a virus that's spreading undetected.”

It added, though the administration has been expanding testing capacity and broadening access to vaccinations, critics say the efforts may be coming too late.

Monkeypox is a disease caused by the monkeypox virus. It is a viral zoonotic disease, meaning that it can spread from animals to humans. It can also spread between people, according to the WHO.

Test tubes labeled “Monkeypox virus positive” are seen in this illustration taken on May 22, 2022. (Reuters)

Symptoms of monkeypox typically include a fever, intense headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy, swollen lymph nodes and a skin rash or lesions. The rash usually begins within one to three days of the start of a fever.

WHO: Monkeypox cases in Europe have tripled in last 2 weeks

In most cases, the symptoms of monkeypox go away on their own within a few weeks, but in some individuals, they can lead to medical complications and even death.

Newborns, children and people with underlying immune deficiencies may be at risk of more serious symptoms and death from monkeypox.

levantnews- xinhua