‘More cases in coming days’: WHO sounds alarm on unusual spread of Monkeypox virus. 10 points

As Monkeypox cases are surging globally, with Argentina adding up to the list of countries, scientists and health experts have suggested that early sign of Monkeypox virus symptoms had been ignored and that resulted in this unprecedented outbreak of the same.

The European Union's disease agency has confirmed that the number of monkeypox cases has reached 219 outside of countries where the virus usually circulates. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned of more cases in coming days.

Here are ten big points to this outbreak

-Monkeypox is an endemic in 11 countries in West and Central Africa

-Reportedly, Nigeria had sought global help beginning in 2017 for an unprecedented outbreak of monkeypox virus, which continues to this day, with the country detecting 558 suspected cases

-The virus was discovered in 1958 in monkeys kept for research. The first human case of monkeypox was recorded in 1970.

-Fever, muscle ache, lesions, and chills are the common symptoms of monkeypox in humans. The virus has a fatality ratio of 3-6 %. Most people recover within three to four weeks.

-The World Health Organization (WHO) has cautioned that  monkeypox cases found in recent weeks could be just the beginning. "We know that we will have more cases in the coming days," Sylvie Briand, WHO's epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention chief, acknowledged in a briefing to countries on the "unusual" spread of the virus.

-The UK reported its first monkeypox case in early May. Since then, the virus has spread rapidly in the country with the infection count now at 90.

-Spain has reported 98 confirmed cases of monkeypox so far. Portugal has meanwhile registered 74 confirmed cases, health authorities said Friday, adding that all the occurrences are in men, mainly aged below 40.

-There's currently no specific treatment for monkeypox. Patients will usually need to stay in a specialist hospital so the infection doesn't spread and general symptoms can be treated.

-In India, Mumbai, West Bengal has advised hospitals to keep isolation beds ready in case anybody reports the symptoms of the globally spreading Monkeypox. The Uttar Pradesh government has directed hospitals and health officials to follow the standard operating procedures regarding the monkeypox infection

-ICMR has also suggested that people with a travel history to countries where Monkeypox cases are being detected should get tested upon arrival