Confirmed monkeypox cases climb in Quebec

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This article was published 26/05/2022 (1378 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With more than two dozen confirmed cases of monkeypox in Canada, public health officials say more could be on the way.

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is reporting 25 confirmed cases in Quebec and one case in Ontario, said deputy chief public health officer Dr. Howard Njoo.

While monkeypox isn’t considered a major public health threat yet, Njoo said the federal government and public health want to keep people informed on progress as COVID-19 is still in circulation.

“Our understanding of the [monkeypox] virus is still evolving, but I want to say this is a global response,” he said at a news conference Thursday. “We are working closely with our international, provincial and territorial partners to keep Canadians safe.”

He also wanted to dispel some misinformation about transmission. There have been concerns over it affecting specific groups of people, namely men having intercourse with men.

The vast majority of the Canadian population is susceptible because there are few vaccinated for smallpox and monkeypox, Njoo said. Canada ceased routinely immunizing people against smallpox in 1972.

“We are going by historical information on how someone gets infected and that is by close contact with someone with lesions from monkeypox and potentially respiratory droplets,” he said. “Bottom line, anyone who is engaged in close contact activity with someone with monkeypox is certainly susceptible to getting infected.”

Monkeypox is from the same family as smallpox and was first discovered in 1958 in a colony of monkeys kept for research. Historically, it was primarily found in western and central African countries and outbreaks were caused by travellers. While it’s considered a rare disease, Spain, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States have all recently reported cases.

So far, vaccination is the best defence against monkeypox. Because it is closely related to smallpox, vaccines for the virus are being deployed to Quebec. Njoo said a small supply of smallpox vaccine has been deployed to Quebec to protect the most vulnerable and there is a national supply. They are also working with vaccine manufacturers to be sure there will be enough vaccines in case there is a spike in cases and it proves to be much more infectious.

PHAC is focusing on targeted vaccination with the smallpox vaccine. Njoo said he doesn’t believe a mass vaccination campaign is necessary. The cases they are seeing are in people who have been in close contact with infected people and have yet to see any indicators of more generalized spread.

However, health officials are not going to be complacent, Njoo said. Monkeypox doesn’t spread like COVID, but officials are watching to see how it develops and can quickly ramp up mitigation if necessary.

To date, there have been no suspected or confirmed cases identified in Manitoba. A provincial spokesperson said in an email that public health will provide updates if necessary.

The spokesperson said health officials circulated a memo to all Manitoba health-care providers on May 20, shortly after the first confirmed cases in Canada. The memo provided information on symptoms, transmission, infection prevention and control precautions, testing and treatment.

» kmckinley@brandonsun.com, with files from The Brandon Sun

» Twitter: @karenleighmcki1