Thursday 2 June 2022 06:16 PM Another 11 people are diagnosed with monkeypox in the UK bringing total to 207 trends now
Eleven more people in England have been diagnosed with monkeypox, bringing the cumulative number of UK cases to 207.
Announcing the new patients today, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) reiterated that most cases have been in gay and bisexual men.
Officials said it was 'particularly important' these men are aware of new lesions, rashes or scabs and get in contact with a sexual health clinic.
The new cases bring the total number confirmed in England to 199, while there have been five in Scotland, two in Northern Ireland and one in Wales.
Scientists are still unsure what is driving the current outbreak, now spotted in two dozen countries, given the virus is normally confined to people returning from Africa.
In a report published last night, the UKHSA revealed the UK's cluster of cases are linked to gay bars, saunas and dating apps.
More than 60 per cent of domestic infections have been among gay and bisexual men, with more than 86 per cent based in the epicentre London. Only two cases have been women.
Most of the UK's infections — 87 per cent — were among people aged 20 to 49. And 111 cases are known to be men who have sex with men.
And the majority UK patients caught the virus in the UK rather than abroad.
Officials said that contact tracing teams had linked the outbreak back to 'gay bars, saunas and the use of dating apps in the UK and abroad'.
MailOnline revealed last week the world's biggest gay dating app Grindr had alerted to users of monkeypox symptoms.
In total, there have been 617 confirmed cases of monkeypox across the globe, with 129 more suspected since the first infection was found at the start of May.
Behind the UK, Spain (156), Portugal (138) and Canada (54) have logged the highest number of confirmed cases.
Officials are urging gay and bisexual men to be aware of new lesions, rashes or scabs and get in contact with a sexual health clinic
The infection often starts with small bumps that scab over and are contagious
In a report released on Wednesday night, the UKHSA released its first analysis, covering the country's first 153 cases.
By May 31, 132 of the 153 cases in England were among London residents (86 per cent).
Only a fifth of cases had travelled from a European country in the past three weeks, suggesting the vast majority picked up the virus in the UK.
The report states: 'Investigations to date have identified links to gay bars, saunas and the use of dating apps in the UK and abroad.
'Investigations continue but currently no single factor or exposure that links the cases has been identified.'
MailOnline revealed that Grindr issued a warning to its users across Europe last Monday, advising them to contact their sexual health provider if they or any recent sexual partners have unusual sores or rashes.
UKHSA is working with the app as well as the British Association of Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH) and the British HIV Association to communicate health risks to gay and bisexual men.
The current outbreak has been linked to several super-spreader events, including a gay pride festival in Gran Canaria on May 5-15, a fetish festival in Belgium on May 5-8 and a 'sauna' in Spain.
It comes as amid concern among health experts that monkeypox could be transmitted to animals via human medical waste.
As the virus circulates outside of Africa, there is an opportunity for spill back into animal populations, which could potentially make the virus endemic in countries beyond Africa.
Dr William Karesh, president of the World Organization for Animal Health told a conference today: 'As we've seen with COVID-19, one thing that comes up is... disposable human medical waste because we are concerned about rodents picking this up.'
'Like a rural local clinic that's putting their waste outside until it's disposed of properly later in the week,' he added.
Countries in Africa have experienced sporadic monkeypox outbreaks since the virus was first discovered in humans in 1970. In Nigeria, there has been an ongoing outbreak since 2017.
The virus was discovered in laboratory monkeys in 1958, and since then various animal species including squirrels and rats have been identified as susceptible to it.
It is understood to have jumped to humans from
