Monkey pox only gay men
Explainer: Why monkeypox is not a &#;gay disease&#;, yet the queer collective needs to heed the health risks
SINGAPORE — A global outbreak of monkeypox is creature largely driven by men who acquire sex with men, based on a finding from the largest study of the disease.
The study published in the New England Journal of Medicine on July 21 found that of confirmed infections diagnosed between April 27 and June 24 this year, 98 per cent were gay or attracted to both genders men, and 95 per cent had caught the disease through sexual activity.
Last week, the Society Health Organization (WHO) declared the disease a global health emergency.
As more is known of how the disease is spread, infectious disease experts here and overseas have warned against stigmatising monkeypox with the lgbtq+ community because it will only work to further its spread, alienating this group of patients and making them not want to get medical aide or treatment.
Apart from that, the spread of monkeypox is not just limited to sexual outing among homosexuals. The disease also spreads through close contact, which means that
Monkeypox is spreading among lgbtq+ men worldwide
The Planet Health Organization (WHO) has now confirmed nearly cases of monkeypox in over a dozen countries, with the largest number in the UK. While most cases so far are among gay and double attraction men, health officials emphasise that anyone can reduce the virus through complete personal contact.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) reported the first case in the current outbreak on 7 May in a man who had recently travelled to Nigeria, where monkeypox is endemic. This was soon followed by two additional cases who share a household and four cases among same-sex attracted and bisexual men, all of whom appear to have contracted the virus locally. As of 23 May, UKHSA has reported 70 confirmed cases in England and one in Scotland.
The latest WHO update on 21 May listed 92 confirmed and 28 suspected cases. After the UK, the most cases have been reported in Spain and Portugal, with smaller numbers in several other European countries, Canada, the United States and Australia. An informal tally by , compiled from various sources, listed more than confirmed o
Since early May, more than 23, cases of monkeypox have been reported worldwide. This is the largest ever global outbreak of the disease.
Cases have now been reported in 78 countries including the UK, Spain, Germany, France, the US and Brazil. Given the scale of the outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has now declared the current monkeypox epidemic a global health emergency.
While anyone can get monkeypox, the current outbreak is overwhelmingly affecting sexually active gay, double attraction and other men who have sex with men. In fact, our recent study which looked at monkeypox infections since the start of the outbreak found that 98% of these infections had occurred in this group. Here’s what these men desire to know.
How it spreads
Monkeypox is a disease caused by infection with the human monkeypox virus, which comes from the alike virus family as smallpox. In fact, symptoms are quite similar to smallpox and include fever, headache, muscle aches, chills, icy symptoms (such as a cough or sore throat).
Symptoms are also accompanied by a rash that appears in blisters on the
‘I felt like I was dirty’: experiences of gay men diagnosed with mpox in England
“After I left the clinic, I got very emotional. Not because I had monkeypox…But I felt let down by the way the discourse, and the way that the infection, the virus or whatever it is, was being portrayed as well. It took me to a place where I just didn’t await to feel in terms of my experience, as a lgbtq+ man, with lots of privilege in lots of ways. Usually I felt like I had dignity in the [health] service and the way I am treated by the government and the likes of that. And it just kind of really sped away suddenly.”
A recent study found that men diagnosed with mpox, clinicians and group stakeholders believe that the government's perceived inaction towards the illness was due to its association with stigmatised sexual minorities. This systemic failure was often compared to the initial response to the AIDS crisis.
Glossary
stigma
Social attitudes that suggest that having a particular illness or being in a particular situation is something to be ashamed of. Stigma can be questioned and