Is monkeypox only in gay community
‘I felt like I was dirty’: experiences of gay men diagnosed with mpox in England
“After I left the clinic, I got very emotional. Not because I had monkeypox…But I felt let down by the way the discourse, and the way that the infection, the virus or whatever it is, was being portrayed as well. It took me to a place where I just didn’t predict to feel in terms of my experience, as a male lover man, with lots of privilege in lots of ways. Usually I felt like I had dignity in the [health] service and the way I am treated by the government and the likes of that. And it just kind of really sped away suddenly.”
A recent study found that men diagnosed with mpox, clinicians and people stakeholders believe that the government's perceived inaction towards the illness was due to its association with stigmatised sexual minorities. This systemic failure was often compared to the initial response to the AIDS crisis.
Glossary
stigma
Social attitudes that suggest that having a particular illness or being in a particular situation is something to be ashamed of. Stigma can be questioned and
Since early May, more than 23, cases of monkeypox have been reported worldwide. This is the largest ever global outbreak of the disease.
Cases have now been reported in 78 countries including the UK, Spain, Germany, France, the US and Brazil. Given the scale of the outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has now declared the current monkeypox epidemic a global health emergency.
While anyone can get monkeypox, the current outbreak is overwhelmingly affecting sexually active gay, multi-attracted and other men who have sex with men. In fact, our recent study which looked at monkeypox infections since the start of the outbreak found that 98% of these infections had occurred in this group. Here’s what these men want to know.
How it spreads
Monkeypox is a disease caused by infection with the human monkeypox virus, which comes from the identical virus family as smallpox. In fact, symptoms are quite similar to smallpox and include fever, headache, muscle aches, chills, freezing symptoms (such as a cough or sore throat).
Symptoms are also accompanied by a rash that appears in blisters on the
mpox (Monkeypox): What You Need to Know
The CDC has raised the alert level on a mpox (monkeypox) outbreak in the United States and HHS announced that it will be ramping up testing and a vaccine distribution for those most at-risk, which includes some members of the Homosexual community and people living with HIV.
mpox is a disease that can produce you sick, including a rash, which may look favor pimples or blisters, often with an earlier flu-like illness. While the current outbreak in the U.S. has upper rates of established cases among queer and bisexual men and transgender and non-binary people, this virus is not limited by gender or sexuality and can spread to anyone, anywhere through close, personal, often skin-to-skin contact.
Health officials and advocates are urging people to seek treatment and available prevention options, including vaccines when available.
What You Need to Recognize
mpox (monkeypox) is a disease caused by the mpox virus, which is in the matching family as smallpox, although much less severe. Its call is characterized by the pox illness that occurs upon infec
Monkeypox and gay men: Separating stigma from health advice
BBC News
A large proportion of monkeypox cases diagnosed in the UK are among gay and double attraction men.
Doctors and public-health experts have spoken to the BBC about the "delicate balance" of keeping those currently most at exposure informed, without stigmatising them or letting others change into complacent.
Does monkeypox spread faster among gay and bisexual men?
The brief answer is no. Anyone can be infected by monkeypox.
The virus is not a sexually transmitted infection. It's mostly caught through close physical skin-to-skin contact, which is why it can be spread to sexual partners.
But with most confirmed cases among men who contain sex with men, doctors are encouraging this community to be particularly sharp to symptoms.
Mateo Prochazka, an epidemiologist from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said: "The infections are not about sexuality. We are concerned about monkeypox in general, as a public thre