Monkey Pox
Suma K R

The last few years have been an era of emerging and reemerging diseases. There have been outbreaks of many viral diseases, out of which, the COVID 19 infection has spread all over the world as a pandemic and has succeeded in bringing the humanity to its knees. Till date it has exacted a tremendous toll, in terms of mortality and morbidity. This pandemic is still ongoing, with multiple mutated variants causing recurring waves of the disease.
There have also been small focal outbreaks of other diseases, like the Nipah virus, Zika virus, Ebola virus, Avian influenza, Kyasanur forest disease, to name a few. The latest viral outbreak to join the bandwagon is the monkey pox virus disease.
Monkey pox is a viral zoonotic disease. It occurs primarily in tropical rainforest areas of Central and West Africa and is occasionally exported to other regions, especially in people who have come in contact with prairie dogs,and other imported animals.Before April 2022, monkey pox virus infection in humans was seldom reported outside African regions where it is endemic. Currently, cases are occurring worldwide, and many cases are being reported from non endemic countries.[1]
In May 2022, many cases of monkey pox were identified in many countries where it was not seen earlier.[1] The current monkey pox outbreak is highly unusual because it is spreading widely in North American and European countries where the virus is not usually found. In early May, the United Kingdom reported a case of monkey pox in a person who recently returned from travel to Nigeria.  Several days later, the U.K. reported three more cases of monkey pox in people who appeared to have become infected locally. Other European nations, Canada and the U.S. then also began confirming cases. It's unclear where the outbreak actually began. Europe is currently the global epicenter of the outbreak, reporting more than 80% of confirmed infections . Right now, most of the cases are occurring in men who have sex with men, thereby making them a high risk communuity.[2]
The U.S. has reported nearly 6,000 cases of monkey pox across 48 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico, according to the CDC. Around 70 to 75 countries where monkey pox is not endemic have reported outbreaks of the viral disease till date. As confirmed cases crossed 22,100 and the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global health emergency, on July 23rd, 2022.[3]
The first 3 cases of monkeypox in India was from Kerala, Delhi reported the 4th monkey pox case, in a person with no travel history. NHM said even one case reported from anywhere in the state should be treated as an outbreak and reported to the district surveillance team. Eight cases of monkey pox have been reported so far in India. It reported first death on Aug. 1.[4]