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Health officials say they're "not concerned" that monkeypox will send the globe into another pandemic, the Associated Press reports.
On Monday (May 30), Dr. Rosamund Lewis, the World Health Organization's (WHO) technical lead for monkeypox, said, "At the moment, we are not concerned about a global pandemic." Lewis added, "We are concerned that individuals may acquire this infection through high-risk exposure if they don't have the information they need to protect themselves."
When asked if the current monkeypox outbreak would lead to a pandemic similar to COVID-19, Lewis responded, "The answer is we don't know, but we don't think so."
Sylvie Briand, Director of Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness and Prevention at WHO, said the reemergence of monkeypox shouldn't cause public panic or fear.
"This monkeypox disease is not COVID-19, it is a different virus," Briand added.
However, Lewis highlighted the need for healthcare workers to spot monkeypox symptoms as soon as they surface.
"Collectively, the world has an opportunity to stop this outbreak. There is a window," Lewis said.
Monkeypox first develops fevers, headaches, muscle aches, chills, and swollen lymph nodes in patients. The rare virus progresses into a rash made up of fluid-filled lesions, and it mostly spreads from touching body fluids or the rashes.
Last week, President Joe Biden also said in a statement that he doesn't believe monkeypox "rises to the level of the kind of concern that existed with COVID-19."
The nation's supply of the smallpox vaccine, which is effective against monkeypox, is enough to "deal with the likelihood of the problem," according to Biden.
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