Europe is at the center of the spread of monkeypox, the European office of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday, which is concerned about the risk of the disease taking hold.
“Europe remains the epicenter of this growing wave, with 25 countries having reported more than 1,500 cases, or 85% of the global total.“, said at a press conference Hans Kluge, the director of WHO Europe, which brings together 53 countries including some from Central Asia.
For the UN institution, the priority is to contain the transmission.
The longer the virus circulates, the more it will spread its reach and the more the disease will take hold in non-endemic countries.
“The scale of this epidemic presents a real risk: the longer the virus circulates, the more it will spread its reach and the more the disease will establish itself in non-endemic countries.“warned Hans Kluge.
Usually circulating in Central and West Africa, the virus is, outside of Europe, now present in Australia, the Middle East, North America and South America, totaling more than 1,600 cases.
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