Is Covid-19 similar to monkeypox? Do you need to worry?

Following reports of more than 16,000 confirmed cases and five fatalities from 70 countries, the World Health Organization has declared monkeypox a global emergency. There have been four confirmed cases of the virus in India as well, according to reports.

‘We have an outbreak that has swiftly spread over the world thanks to new forms of transmission that we don’t fully understand. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: ‘I am aware that this has not been a simple or straightforward process and that there are differing viewpoints.’

The emergency declaration is expected to cause concern around the world, which is already reeling from the effects of the coronavirus epidemic. While it will hopefully encourage greater investment in treating the once-rare disease and aggravate the hunt for precious vaccines. However, Monkeypox is not like Covid-19, and here we try to point out why this is not on the scale of the pandemic.

WHAT ARE CORONAVIRUS AND THE MONKEYPOT VIRUSES?

Monkeypox is a member of the family Poxviridae, which also contains variola virus (which causes smallpox), vaccinia virus (used in the smallpox vaccine), and cowpox virus, and is wholly distinct from coronavirus, which is caused by SARS-CoV-2.

Monkeypox has been around for a while, whereas SARS-CoV-2 was a unique strain that spread via the respiratory route and targeted the lungs and other organs. ‘Monkeypox is like bed bugs if COVID is like a snake bite. Important and alarming, but distinct,’ According to University of Maryland’s Chief of Infectious Diseases, Dr. Faheem Younus.

HOW ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF CORONAVIRUS AND MONKEYPOX DIFFERENT?

While there are some similarities between the symptoms of Covid-19 and monkeypox, they differ in severity. In addition to weariness, muscular or body aches, headache, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhoea, Covid-19 symptoms can also include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, and fatigue.

Fever, chills, body aches, weariness, and lumps on various body areas are among the signs and symptoms of monkeypox. The lesions can be excruciatingly painful, and the infection can make patients contagious for weeks at a time.

CORONAVIRUS VS. MONKEYPOX:  MODE OF TRANSMISSION

While Coronavirus spreads between people who are in close contact with each other, it can spread from an infected person’s mouth or nose in small liquid particles when they cough, sneeze, speak, sing or breathe.

Meanwhile, monkeypox spreads mainly through skin-to-skin contact, but it can also be transmitted through linens used by someone with monkeypox. Although it’s been moving through the population like a sexually transmitted disease, officials have been watching for other types of spread that could expand the outbreak.

The new outbreak outside of Africa where the disease has primarily affected guys who have intercourse with other men. Because the virus needs close skin contact with lesions and fluid, it is more difficult to spread.

WHERE ARE WE WITH TREATMENT FOR CORONAVIRUS AND MONKEYPOX?

Since SARS-CoV-2 was a novel strain, it took the world almost a year to figure out how to treat it. During that time, Covid-19 caused havoc and killed thousands of people around the globe. However, in case of monkeypox, scientists have been able to decipher the disease’s mechanism and create vaccinations because it has been on our radar for decades.

People exposed to monkeypox are often given one of several smallpox vaccines, which have been shown to be effective against monkeypox. Anti-viral drugs are also being developed. However, unlike the numerous companies that made Covid-19 vaccines, there is only one maker for the vaccine used against monkeypox, Denmark’s Bavarian Nordic.

The UN agency previously stated that it was working to develop a vaccine-sharing system for the nations that are most afflicted, but it provided little information on how it may operate. Millions of doses of the monkeypox vaccine have been ordered by nations like the US, Canada, Germany, and the UK, but none have reached Africa.

The WHO designation of a ‘public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC)’ is intended to launch a coordinated global response and may make financing available for cooperation on the sharing of vaccinations and medications.