It is worth thinking about the targeting of vaccination

Monkeypox-related deaths have now been reported in two continents outside of Africa: South America and Europe.

Spain was the first to report monkeypox-related deaths in Europe. The country’s first death was reported on Friday and the second on Saturday.

Earlier on Friday, a monkeypox-related death was reported in Brazil. It was the first of its kind outside of Africa.

It is not yet clear whether monkeypox actually caused any of these three deaths.

According to the Brazilian Ministry of Health, the 41-year-old man who contracted the monkeypox virus had lymph node cancer and his immune system was weakened. He was already hospitalized.

In Spain, the investigation into the cause of death is still ongoing. According to the health authorities, the dead were two young men.

According to the World Health Organization, more than 18,000 monkeypox cases have been reported outside of Africa since the beginning of May.

In Spain, around 4,000 people have contracted the virus, in Brazil around 1,000.

The World Health Organization WHO estimates that more monkeypox-related deaths can be expected in Europe as well. WHO calls for measures to prevent the spread of the virus.

Around a thousand doses of monkeypox vaccine should arrive in Finland at the end of July. The vaccines are mainly intended for those known to have been exposed to monkeypox.

Director of diagnostics of Helsinki and Uusimaa hospital district (HUS). Lasse Lehtonen according to the recent deaths give reason to think about the targeting of monkeypox vaccinations.

Lehtonen estimates that people infected with HIV, for example, are probably somewhat more sensitive to the severe form of monkeypox.

The expansion of deaths outside of Africa did not come as a surprise to Lehtones.

– If the immune response is weakened, monkeypox can become a dangerous disease even for an adult. Otherwise, it is mostly only dangerous for children under 8 years old.

According to Lehtonen, you should not be afraid of monkeypox, but it is good to strive for caution.

– This is the same thing as all other infectious diseases. Their existence should be remembered, and especially the possibility of infections related to sexual behavior is good to keep in mind, says Lehtonen.

Monkeypox occurs in Africa from time to time. Outside of Africa, it has spread through animals and tourism.

In 2022, the vast majority of infections found outside of Africa have been acquired through sex. Infections have been found especially in men who have sex with men.

According to THL, it is likely that the risk of infection increases if there are many sexual partners.

The first symptoms of monkeypox can be fever, headache, swollen lymph nodes, back pain, muscle pain and fatigue.

Skin symptoms usually start to appear 1-3 days after the onset of fever. A blister-like rash is formed especially on the face and in the area of ​​the hands and feet.

Symptoms typically last 2–4 weeks. Usually the disease gets better on its own.