Dr. Ishwar Gilada, an infectious diseases expert and consultant for HIV/STDs, has stated that Monkeypox is like any other sexually transmitted disease and also theorised why the World Health Organisation (WHO) is not declaring it as such. The statement came after Kerala reported the first case in the country.
“WHO is not declaring it as it will cause some kind of stigma and discrimination against people who are currently infected with it”, Dr. Gilada told ANI.
“Almost 99% of the cases currently are in MSM which is male having sex with male and almost 80% of the cases are in Europe and then in America, Canada, Australia and others”.
Mumbai | Monkeypox is just like any other sexually transmitted infection. Somehow WHO is not declaring it as it will cause some kind of stigma/discrimination against people who are currently infected with it: Dr Ishwar Gilada, infectious diseases expert & consultant for HIV/STDs pic.twitter.com/Rv4q1VhiXq
— ANI (@ANI) July 14, 2022
He further said that smallpox vaccines can be used as a therapeutic agent for treating monkeypox until we have a proper treatment for it. Dr. Gilada, however, revealed that the disease is spreading only through close or very close contact and advised to avoid discrimination and stigma and take necessary precautions.
Notably, Dr. Gilada’s statements of Monkeypox spreading due to sex among men can be confirmed by a WHO report which came out in May this year. Citing the report, CNBC reported that this was the primary reason for the outbreak of Monkeypox especially in North America and Europe. As of today, over 50 countries have a total of over 10,000 confirmed cases of the disease and the majority of them are sprouting up in Europe.
Almost 99% of the cases currently are in MSM which is male having sex with male and almost 80% of the cases are in Europe and then in America, Canada, Australia and others. Monkeypox is transmitted mainly through close or very close personal contact: Dr Ishwar Gilada
— ANI (@ANI) July 14, 2022
Does Monkeypox spread with sexual encounters?
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that the disease could spread among people in close contact including during sexual encounters. It also suggests that intimate contact including touching the objects and fabrics (clothing, bedding, or towels) infected by a Monkeypox carrier can lead to infection.
Notably, having multiple sexual partners also makes a person highly vulnerable to Monkeypox and the chances increase manyfold if one of the partners shows symptoms such as a rash or flu-like illness.
Monkeypox symptoms
Fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills, and tiredness are some of the common symptoms an infected person might experience. An infected person may also develop a rash between one to four days after he/she has a flu-like illness. CDC says that the disease spread from the time symptoms start until the rash has healed, which could take several weeks.
Discovered on: 2022-07-14 17:27:00
Source: Expert says ‘Monkeypox like any other sexually transmitted disease’; highli…
