The transmission of smallpox from monkeys through tiny virus particles that remain in the air “has not been reported,” the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in guidance published Thursday. .
The virus can spread through “saliva or respiratory secretions” during close contact, but these secretions “fall from the air quickly”, and studies have indicated that this method of transmission seems unusual.
Unlike other viral diseases like Covid-19 and measles, the monkeypox virus is not subject to “airborne transmission,” which involves tiny particles that remain in the air or spread in air currents, the CDC notes.
“In cases where people who have monkeypox have traveled by plane, no known cases of smallpox have occurred in people sitting around them, even on long international flights.”
But because of the potential for monkeypox to spread through respiratory secretions, the agency “recommends that people infected with monkeypox wear a mask if they need to be around others in their homes, if close, face-to-face contact is likely to occur.” ”.
Masks are also recommended for healthcare workers and others who may be in close contact with an infected person.
Previous CDC guidance had said wearing a mask could help protect travelers from smallpox, but that recommendation was removed on Monday because it “caused confusion,” the agency said.
The virus mainly spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids or injuries from an infected person, or with contaminated materials such as bedding, the guidance notes note.
Researchers are still learning about other potential transmission methods, such as contact with the semen of an infected person or contact with an infected person who has no symptoms.
As of Thursday afternoon, the CDC reported 45 probable or confirmed cases of smallpox in 15 states and the District of Columbia. The CDC has reports of 1,356 confirmed cases in 31 countries where the virus is not endemic.
Source: CNN Brasil
