Monkeypox is spreading rapidly. Children now have it too.

Beyond male sexual relations, Jay Varma, a professor of artificial health sciences at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, said, “There is a high likelihood of increased cases of infection in other social networks and environments.” Self-contained There are no social networks, they all “bridge” to other networks. “

Anyone can get infected with the virus. The virus can increase pain and cause swelling of the lymph nodes and other flu-like symptoms. Its main transmission route was the sexual network, but it can spread through other forms of contact. When someone gets it at home, the virus is especially transmitted to others through prolonged skin-to-skin contact, such as sharing clothes and towels, touching pain, and hugging. it’s simple.

Children who are constantly interacting at school and daycare can be particularly vulnerable. Currently, dozens of viruses are detected each year, including infectious rashes such as hand-foot-and-mouth disease, raising concerns that monkeypox may be difficult to contain if it begins to spread in a child-centered environment. increase.

“It is inevitable that some children will be infected and will go to school with the infection,” Balma said. “What we don’t know is how likely it is that children will be transmitted to other children while they are in school, and if they do, are they limited to a small number of cases? Does it cause a large outbreak?

Health officials at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week they were aware of two childhood cases in the country. Another case was identified in a pregnant woman who gave birth recently, said John Brooks, chief medical officer for monkeypox at the CDC.

The good news is that so far there have been no deaths in outbreaks in the United States. By targeting the major transmission routes of the virus and treating the most affected groups (men who are currently having sex with each other), further spread within the community can be prevented.

Nonetheless, US Secretary of Health and Social Welfare Xavier Besera emphasized the importance of preparing for a broader outbreak, including ensuring access to vaccines, on Thursday.

“All Americans should pay attention to monkeypox,” he said in a phone call with the media. “Monkeypox is not Covid, but it is contagious. It hurts. And it can be dangerous.”

historical example

Historically, childhood cases were not uncommon in parts of West Africa and Central Africa where monkeypox is considered endemic. The first human case of the virus was a child in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970, and past outbreaks have spread primarily through contact with infected animals. And in such cases, according to WHO, severe cases occurred more commonly among children.

Monkeypox in the United States in 2003 originated from rodents imported from Ghana, and a study published in the Journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases found that pediatric patients were more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit than adults. High. Studies have shown that nearly one-third of the 37 confirmed patients were under the age of 18.

However, in another major outbreak in Nigeria in 2017, there were only a handful of child cases. Also, according to his one systematic review of outbreak case data that occurred between 1970 and her 2019, the median age of monkeypox patients was actually 4 in the last 50 years. It has increased from the age of 21 to her 21 years.

The 2022 outbreak looks a little different from what it was in the past. The virus most often spreads by contact with infectious lesions or body fluids during intimate encounters. According to a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, symptoms also differ from the medical literature and often present with wounds that resemble common sexually transmitted diseases and rashes.

Changes in the nature of the virus make it more difficult to recognize cases, as well as potential effects on children.

“We have little experience with our children, so unfortunately we will learn as they become infected,” Brooks of the CDC said in a call to a clinician on July 23. “What has been reported so far is going well.”

Person at risk

So far, most monkeypox patients worldwide share their homes with other infected individuals, such as parents and guardians, said Rosamund Lewis, WHO’s technical leader on monkeypox. .. However, some appear to have no epidemiological connections, indicating infection from elsewhere in the community.

“The message remains the same, regardless of age. Anyone who has home or direct contact with a person with monkeypox can be at risk,” Lewis said. .

Another concern is that monkeypox can be transmitted through the placenta during pregnancy and is known to cause complications in babies, including stillbirth. Brooks of the CDC said pregnant women in the United States with the virus did not seem to give it to their children. He said the baby was given prophylactic antibodies and was doing well.

The Bavarian Nordic vaccine Jynneos, a commonly used treatment for monkeypox, and Siga Technologies Inc.’s smallpox antiviral drug Tpoxx can be used to treat children as needed, such as when they are at high risk of exposure. can be used. In June, the CDC found the best way to use Jynneos in children exposed to the virus. Health officials told reporters last week how to use her Tpoxx in pediatric patients. said there is.

However, clinicians are having a hard time prescribing Tpoxx to their patients because the US currently has a limited supply of Ginneos available and is only approved for smallpox.

That’s why it’s especially important for health officials to plan what happens if the infection spreads rapidly among children, said Balma of Weil Cornell.

“Situations where infected children visit schools and day care will raise a high level of concern from managers and families,” he said. “Public health agencies, including contact tracking and testing, have done so. It’s important to develop a protocol now on how you plan to investigate such cases. “

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