The Ministry of Health is attempting to obtain 80 doses of a vaccine that could help protect at-risk individuals from monkeypox, reports Vísir.
The vaccine would be reserved for immunocompromised people and healthcare workers and would not be distributed widely to the public. Additionally, people who are exposed to monkeypox could be vaccinated in a “ring” strategy, meaning those closest to an infected person would be vaccinated to prevent the disease from spreading further.
“But not all vaccinated people will be exposed, I think that’s pretty clear,” says Chief Epidemiologist Þórólfur Guðnason.
Þórólfur encourages people to exercise caution in sexual intercourse and one-on-one dating, especially abroad, due to the risk of infection. People should be aware of the symptoms of monkeypox and get examined as soon as possible.
The first two cases in Iceland were diagnosed on June 8, but the third case was diagnosed over the weekend. The individuals had all been traveling around Europe.
Þórólfur says he expects the number of cases to increase but does not expect an epidemic, let alone one similar to Covid, because monkeypox is considerably less contagious and is most likely to be transmitted in close contact.
The World Health Organization is discussing changing the name of the virus after 30 scientists around the world called for a name that is “neutral, non-discriminatory and non-stigmatizing” to align it with best practices for disease naming. The current naming system associates the disease with Africa when the pathogen’s true range is not known, making it inaccurate and discriminatory, according to the scientists.
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