The monkeypox outbreak has grown to include about 260 confirmed cases and scores more under investigation in 21 countries
An undated photo provided by VisualDx shows pustules on the hand of a monkeypox patient. Monkeypox symptoms include a rash that eventually becomes raised, growing into pus-filled blisters. (VisualDx via The New York Times)
For a world weary of fighting the coronavirus, the monkeypox outbreak poses a key question: Am I at risk?
The answer is reassuring. Most children and adults with healthy immune systems are likely to dodge severe illness, experts said in interviews. But there are two high-risk groups.
One comprises infants younger than six months. But they are not yet affected by the current outbreak. And many older adults, the group most likely to succumb to the monkeypox virus, are at least somewhat protected by decades-old smallpox vaccinations, studies suggest.
Vaccinated older adults might become infected but are likely to escape with only mild symptoms.
“The bottom line is that even those that were vaccinated many decades before maintain a very, very high level of antibodies and the ability to neutralize the virus,” said Dr. Luigi Ferrucci, scientific director of the National Institute on Aging.
©2019 New York Times News Service