Pandemic continues… Monkeypox next?

Just a friendly reminder that the Covid pandemic is not over. We continue to see cases and an alarmingly high daily death rate, which had an all time high of 32 people dying one day last week.

And while the vast majority of people who contract Covid will successfully recover from it, there are still dangers with Long Covid, and potential issues with re-infection.

Keith Lynch, who we awarded with a Bravo Award last year, has written a good explainer about where we're at with Covid. As he says, it seems Covid will never really be “over”.

Next up on the infectious diseases front is Monkeypox (frequently abbreviated to MPX). The WHO has now declared that Monkeypox represents a “public health emergency of international concern”.

At present, the disease appears to be spread by close contact, and it is unfortunate that most cases have been between gay and bisexual men. But that doesn't mean that it's a “gay disease” - that is certainly unhelpful. And it's likely to lead to further stigmatisation of the LGBTQ community.

Crucially, as the WHO points out in the FAQ:

“The risk of monkeypox is not limited to people who are sexually active or men who have sex with men. Anyone who has close contact with someone who has symptoms is at risk.”

One article I read makes the point that

“Though it's unclear exactly how, where, or when the current strain of this rare virus began infecting humans… the first significant instances of major spread are believed to have happened at parties largely attended by gay men in the Canary Islands and Antwerp, Belgium.”

“Monkeypox typically, but not exclusively, spreads through extended skin-to-skin contact. So because it began in men who have sex with men, it has largely stayed among them.

Had the virus first spread among straight people, it would likely have remained among them”

So, again we're let down by misinformation.

It would seem that Monkeypox can also be spread by clothes and bedding that have touched infected rashes. Though, it seems that airborne transmission (at this stage) is unlikely.

Our own Ministry of Health - Manatū Hauora - discusses transmission:

Person-to-person spread may occur through:

• sexual or intimate contact with an infected person (including kissing)

• contact with clothing or linens (such as bedding or towels) used by an infected person

• direct contact with MPX skin lesions or scabs

• respiratory droplets from an individual with MPX.

At present, the case count is close to 17,000 cases. So, it's a small number, but present in 68 countries as of this writing. As we've seen with other diseases, its spread will be exponential, so don't expect it to stay low.

Luckily we have a vaccine, though its use is recommended only for those at risk - such as those who have been in close contact with someone who has MPX. Luckily, this particular vaccine (unlike the Covid vaccine) can be protective after exposure.

Speaking of spreading misinformation, it seems that our favourite pastor, Brian Tamaki, is guilty of doing this about Monkeypox, and spewing anti-LGBTQ rhetoric at the same time, claiming that he doesn't have to worry about Monkeypox because he's not having gay sex with other men.

This past weekend, Tamaki's Freedoms and Rights Coalition (FARC) was protesting against the government in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. They got small turnouts, but then irresponsibly walked onto the Auckland Southern Motorway, blocking traffic.

While anybody has a right to protest, dangerously disrupting traffic is another matter. The police have threatened to arrest and prosecute those who walked on the motorway. That would be a good move, though at this stage, they've yet to follow through on that.

And, it's difficult to see what they're protesting against. They don't like the government, and want all the major political parties out. The place to express that desire is at next year's election, not with random silly protests. I'm comforted by the fact that the crowds were small, reported less than 1,000 people in Auckland, which has a population of around 1.6 million people.