The total number of confirmed cases of monkeypox in the UK has risen to 56 after 36 new cases of the virus were confirmed on Monday.
The updated figures have been released by the UK Health Security Agency.
The rise in new infections comes after experts said the number of cases would increase in the coming days and weeks.
dr. Susan Hopkins, chief medical officer at UKHSA, told the BBC yesterday that the agency is “tracking more cases every day”.
Monkeypox is usually a mild infection that clears up within a few weeks.
As part of its effort to control the spread of the virus, the NHS has updated its guidelines to encourage people to isolate themselves if they are diagnosed with monkeypox.
It also reads: “You may need to stay in a specialist hospital so that your symptoms can be treated and to prevent the infection from spreading to other people.”
The first case of the current outbreak in the UK was discovered when a person who had recently returned to the UK from Nigeria, where they were believed to have contracted the rare infection, was diagnosed with monkey pox.
The World Organization has confirmed that about 90 cases of the rare infectious disease have been recorded worldwide since early May.
This story is being updated.
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