France has 1,453 confirmed cases of infection with the monkeypox virus, health authorities announced on Wednesday, adding that this significant increase should not be interpreted as “an exceptional increase” because it includes a “catch-up of data “.
“As of July 19, 2022 at 12:00 p.m., 1,453 confirmed cases have been identified in France”, including six women and two children, indicated the Public Health France agency on its site.
Distributed throughout France
Of all the cases counted, “678 residents in Ile-de-France, 111 in Occitania, 103 in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, 65 in New-Aquitaine, 55 in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, 41 in the Hauts-de-France, 25 in Grand-Est, 18 in Normandy, 15 in Pays-de-la-Loire, 9 in Bourgogne-Franche-Comt, 9 in Centre-Val-de-Loire, 9 in Brittany and 1 in Martinique”, details SPF.
Of the cases that were investigated, 78% had a genito-anal rash, 72% a rash on another part of the body, 76% a fever. In addition, 274 cases are HIV positive and 513 are on HIV PreP.
Rise of cases
Faced with the rise in cases of monkeypox and the difficulties in tracing the chains of contamination, France announced ten days ago the extension of vaccination, now offered preventively to the most exposed groups, in particular homosexuals. and multi-partner bisexuals, as in other countries.
Faced with growing criticism of difficulties in getting an appointment, the government and health authorities assured last week that there were enough smallpox vaccines and that the doses were gradually arriving in 70 centres.
emergency committee
The WHO Emergency Committee will meet on Thursday to determine ways to stem the outbreak of monkeypox, which has crossed the 10,000 case mark in some 60 countries, with Europe as the epicenter.
The European Commission announced on Monday the purchase of 54,530 additional doses of the vaccine from the Danish laboratory Bavarian Nordic, worrying about an increase in cases of “nearly 50%” in the EU in one week.
A distant cousin of human smallpox, but considered much less dangerous, monkeypox usually heals on its own after two or three weeks.
