After the EU’s monkeypox cases increased 3-fold over the previous fortnight, the WHO’s regional director-general said there was no time for complacency, with ‘almost 90% of all laboratory-confirmed and globally reported cases since mid-May’ – more than 4,500 infections were confirmed and 10 percent required hospitalisation. The senior official also said that while 99 percent of cases to date have been male, ‘small numbers of cases have also now been reported among household members, heterosexual contacts, and non-sexual contacts, as well as among children’. The global total of infections (more than 6,200 at July 4 according to Our World in Data) is believed to be an undercount as community spread has been observed and testing can be hard to obtain in some jurisdictions. Read more
Before you travel, call Travelvax Australia’s telephone advisory service on 1300 360 164 (toll-free from landlines) for country-specific advice and information. You can also make an appointment at your nearest Travelvax clinic to obtain vaccinations, medication to prevent or treat illness, and accessories for your journey.