Travel-Related Monkeypox Outbreaks in the Era of COVID-19 Pandemic: Are We Prepared?

Oyelola A Adegboye; Maria Eugenia Castellanos; Faith O Alele; Anton Pak; Henry C Ezechukwu; Kay Hou; Theophilus I Emeto

doi:10.3390/v14061283

Travel-Related Monkeypox Outbreaks in the Era of COVID-19 Pandemic: Are We Prepared?

Viruses. 2022 Jun 13;14(6):1283. doi: 10.3390/v14061283.

Authors

Oyelola A Adegboye^{1

2

3}, Maria Eugenia Castellanos^{1

2

3}, Faith O Alele^{1

3}, Anton Pak⁴, Henry C Ezechukwu⁵, Kay Hou⁶, Theophilus I Emeto^{1

2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Public Health & Tropical Medicine, College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia.
² World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Vector-Borne and Neglected Tropical Diseases, College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia.
³ Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia.
⁴ Centre for the Business and Economics of Health, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4067, Australia.
⁵ Department of Medical Biochemistry, Eko University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ijanikin 102004, Lagos State, Nigeria.
⁶ College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia.

Abstract

Several neglected infectious pathogens, such as the monkeypox virus (MPXV), have re-emerged in the last few decades, becoming a global health burden. Despite the incipient vaccine against MPXV infection, the global incidence of travel-related outbreaks continues to rise. About 472 confirmed cases have been reported in 27 countries as of 31 May 2022, the largest recorded number of cases outside Africa since the disease was discovered in the early 1970s.

Keywords: COVID-19; communicable disease control; monkeypox; orthopoxvirus; travel medicine.

MeSH terms

COVID-19* / epidemiology
Disease Outbreaks
Humans
Monkeypox virus
Mpox (monkeypox)* / epidemiology
Pandemics / prevention & control
Travel
Travel-Related Illness

Grants and funding

This research received no external funding.