A virus that is transmitted differently than that of Covid-19. Droplets are a “minor” transmission route for MPOX, a WHO spokesperson assured on Tuesday, insisting that further research is needed to better understand “the transmission dynamics” of the virus.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mpox is spread from person to person primarily through “close contact.” On its website, the WHO explains that close contact includes “skin-to-skin contact (e.g., touching or sexual intercourse) and mouth-to-mouth or mouth-to-skin contact (e.g., kissing). It also includes being face-to-face with someone (e.g., talking or breathing in close proximity and coming into contact with infectious respiratory particles).”
Possible contamination via lesions
“If you’re talking to someone in close proximity, if you’re breathing on them, if you’re physically close to them, there’s a possibility that droplets, if you have lesions, could spread to someone else,” WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris told a regular news briefing in Geneva.
“But this is a minor source” of transmission, she insisted. In any case, she added, “further research is needed to fully understand the dynamics of transmission” of the virus.
According to the WHO, it is also possible for the virus to remain present for some time on clothes, linen, objects… and surfaces that have been touched by a person with the disease.
A person who touches them in turn could also be at risk of infection if they have cuts or abrasions or if they touch their eyes, nose, mouth or other mucous membranes before washing their hands.
WHO recommends cleaning and disinfecting surfaces and objects, and washing hands after touching potentially contaminated surfaces or objects. However, it does not recommend the widespread use of masks. Wearing a mask is recommended for health workers and people in contact with a sick person, Harris said.
The resurgence of MPOX in Africa, which is hitting the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) hard, but also Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, and the appearance of a new variant (1b) prompted the WHO to trigger its highest level of alert at the international level on August 14.
