Monkeypox was a neglected disease until early this year, with few reports on cases, and that too from travellers, though the disease was endemic in Central and Eastern Africa for many years. First identified in 1958 as a disease in imported monkeys in Denmark, monkeypox is a zoonotic viral infection that can infect humans and other animals. The origin and source of the disease are however unknown, therefore the name ‘monkeypox’ remains a misnomer for the disease.
The identification of a cluster of cases associated with a superspreader event in Europe in May-June this year and the subsequent rapid spread across the globe prompted the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare the outbreak of monkeypox as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). As of September 2022, over 50,000 cases of monkeypox virus infections have been reported from over 99 countries. Over 15 deaths attributable to the disease have been reported, eight of which were reported from locations that have not historically reported monkeypox, including one from India.
