Canada now has 77 confirmed cases of monkeypox, with 71 in Quebec, five in Ontario and one in Alberta.
Speaking to reporters at a health briefing on Friday, Dr Theresa Tam, Canada’s director of public health, said the risk of exposure to smallpox “is not unique to any group or environment”.
“Anyone, regardless of gender or sexual orientation, could become infected and spread the virus if they come into close contact, including intimate sexual contact with an infected person or a contaminated object,” he added.
READ MORE: WHO warns that outbreaks of diseases such as monkeypox are more common
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) website, smallpox is a disease that is transmitted from animals to humans and comes from the same family of viruses that cause smallpox, which was declared eradicated in 1980.
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Symptoms of monkeypox include mainly skin lesions in the mouth and genitals, and can also include fever and headaches, as well as joint and muscle aches, according to the WHO.
Globally, there are 550 confirmed cases in 30 non-endemic countries where the virus is not normally found.
1:14 WHO doesn’t expect monkeypox to turn into another pandemic WHO doesn’t expect monkeypox to turn into another pandemic
Canada confirmed its first two cases of monkeypox on May 19, when two people in Quebec tested positive for the rare disease.
Cases of monkeypox in Canada are suspected to have originated at a local sauna in Montreal, doctors told Global News.
However, government officials have so far stayed away from confirming the origin of monkeypox in Canada, citing privacy concerns and stigmatization.
Read more: Montreal Sauna Suspects Origin of Monkeypox Outbreak in Canada: Doctors
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Despite the growing number of cases since then, Deputy Director of Public Health Dr. Howard Njoo said last week that mass vaccination is still not needed.
Njoo said that because the virus “does not discriminate” and can be spread through close contact with an infected person, people can prevent the infection by “keeping physical distance from people away from home.”
“In addition, the use of masks, covering up coughs and sneezes, and frequent hand washing are still important, especially in public spaces,” he told reporters at a health conference last week.
– with archives of the Canadian Press, Saba Aziz and Sean Boynton
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