Monkeypox continues to spread and Spain is already preparing its plan of action.

Monkeypox continues to progress. After identifying cases in Italy and Swedennow six countries confirmed infections for this virus. What at first seemed like a couple of isolated cases in United Kingdom is becoming more and more of an outbreak that is already so disturbing World Health Organization as well as health authorities around the world. In fact, the fear is that some countries are already developing their own protocol of action. This is the case Spainwhere is the purchase antiviral and smallpox vaccines.

It should be noted that currently There is no vaccine for monkeypox approved in Europe. However, the smallpox vaccine has been shown to protect with about 85%. This vaccine came out of all vaccination calendars in the 80s of the 20th century, when smallpox was completely eradicated. For this reason, the elderly are protected to a certain extent, while those born later are not. additional protection. Despite this, some of these vaccines continue to be used, especially among high-risk laboratory workers and the military.

The plan is to get enough of these vaccines, as well as antivirals, which can be effective against this disease. And it lies in the fact that initially all the cases identified in the world are mild, but you need to be prepared.

The current situation with monkeypox

Spain currently has seven confirmed cases of monkeypox and more than twenty suspects under investigation. One of them was found in Canary Islands and the rest in Madrid, although it is possible that they appear more in other communities.

There have also been cases in United Kingdomor, where the first was revealed, Portugal, Sweden, Italy and USA. In Sweden and Italy, they are united by a trip to the Canary Islands. USA trip to Canadaá, where several suspicious cases are already under investigation.

Countries keep falling like dominoes, with a few common factors. The first and best news is that they all represent mild symptoms. The second thing is Malealthough this does not mean that women cannot be infected. It also seems that many of them are men who sleep with other men, but this does not say anything about the profile. people who can get infected. It’s just a prejudice, probably coming from the places where they were infected.

For this reason, since anyone can become infected and it will be dangerous if it reaches vulnerable people, some countries have already taken action. AT United Kingdomfor example, the smallpox vaccine is already being offered to high-risk medical personnel and others at high risk of infection. In Spain they have not started yet but are planning an extensive protocol to deal with monkeypox.

Spain’s plans to counter this new health threat

According to data from EFE collected Agency Synchronization, Spanish Ministry of Health is already considering purchasing a smallpox vaccine developed by a pharmaceutical company Bavarian Nordic. It is approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) but is not approved for sale in Spain, so it must be handled through Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS).

On the other hand, the purchase of two antivirals is being considered: tecovimat and cidofovir. The first affects the virus envelope protein, which is necessary for viruses to leave infected cells and spread throughout the body. As for the second one, prevents virus replication. Both have been previously tested for monkeypox and were found to be effectiveso they will be very helpful if this outbreak continues to spread.

But at the moment, all this is only in the study stage. Now it is vital to identify cases as soon as possible, isolate them and prevent them from infecting more people. Therefore, anyone who has suspected skin lesions is strongly advised to immediately go to the hospital. And in the same way, a call was made to the medical centers so that any suspicious lesion would be reviewed by experts on the disease. Deter, prevent and act. These are three verbs that we have become very familiar with over the past two years. I hope this time the situation will not last so long.