Monkeypox: Only a fifth of cases in this country linked to travel
PremiumMonkeypox is related to smallpox, which killed millions around the world every year before it was eradicated in 1980
Only 18%, or 34 of the 190, confirmed monkeypox cases reported in the United Kingdom are linked to travel, according to Britain's UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
The foreign travel history has also been seen only within a number of different countries in Europe.
So far, the UKHSA has identified links to gay bars, saunas and the use of dating apps in Britain and abroad.
"Investigations continue but currently no single factor or exposure that links the cases has been identified," the agency cautioned.
Cases of monkeypox are continuing to rise outside Africa, where the pathogen is endemic.
WHO on Monkeypox
On Wednesday, the World Health Organization said it had received reports of more than 550 confirmed cases of the viral disease from 30 countries outside of Africa since the first report in early May.
The UN health agency's top monkeypox expert Rosamund Lewis said that the appearance of so many cases across much of Europe and other countries where it has not been seen before "is clearly a cause for concern, and it does suggest undetected transmission for a while".
"Investigations are ongoing, but the sudden appearance of monkeypox in many countries at the same time suggests there may have been undetected transmission for some time," said the WHO.
Monkeypox is related to smallpox, which killed millions around the world every year before it was eradicated in 1980.
However, the UN health body also informed that monkeypox, which spreads through close contact, is much less severe, with symptoms typically including a high fever and a blistery chickenpox-like rash that clears up after a few weeks.
So far, most cases have been reported among men who have sex with men, although experts stress there is no evidence that monkeypox is transmitted sexually.
"Anyone can be infected with monkeypox if they have close physical contact with someone else who is infected," said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
He urged everyone to help "fight stigma, which is not just wrong, it could also prevent infected individuals from seeking care, making it harder to stop transmission."
The WHO, he said, was also "urging affected countries to widen their surveillance".
Vaccines developed for smallpox have been found to be about 85% effective in preventing monkeypox, but they are in short supply.
WHO is not proposing mass-vaccination, but rather targeted use in some settings to protect health workers and people most at risk of infection.