Faced with a proliferation of monkeypox cases in Europe, including one confirmed case in Switzerland, the Federal Office of Public Health (OFSP) is examining the possibility of obtaining a vaccine. There is no need to worry, said the deputy principal.
“Clarifications about the availability and acquisition of the vaccine are currently underway,” Linda Narte told Swiss German television SRF on Sunday. There is no specific vaccine against monkeypox, she said, but first and second generation smallpox vaccines are effective against the disease.
They were given in Switzerland as part of the smallpox eradication program until 1972. People who were vaccinated against smallpox before that date will “probably have some immunity” to the smallpox virus. Select Monkey, Deputy Director of FOPH. “I can’t say how good this immunity is at the moment.”
A third-generation smallpox vaccine, which also provides protection against monkeypox, has been licensed in the European Union. However, according to FOPH, this vaccine is not available or authorized in Switzerland.
Close contact is required
At the moment, nothing indicates that we are facing a new epidemic, notes Linda Narte. “Based on what is known about the virus, it can be assumed that it is less transmissible than the coronavirus.” Close contact is necessary for the transmission of monkeypox.
The World Health Organization had recorded more than 90 confirmed infections as of Saturday in countries where the virus, which originated in West and Central Africa, does not appear naturally.
In Switzerland, a confirmed case of infection was announced on Saturday in the canton of Bern. According to the health authorities, the middle-aged man has mild symptoms. It may have been contaminated in a European country. He complained of fever, malaise and rash. He was placed in solitary confinement at his home.
>> Read also: First case of monkeypox discovered in Switzerland
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