People with monkeypox symptoms should not have sex, experts warn

Warning comes as UK cases rise to 179

People have been urged to avoid sex from the first sign of monkeypox symptoms (Cynthia S Goldsmith, Russell Regner/CDC via AP)

People with monkeypox symptoms should abstain from sex, experts have warned as cases in the UK continue to rise.

In new guidance, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also said people with the disease should use condoms for eight weeks after infection.

A further 71 cases of the disease in England were confirmed on Monday, taking the UK total to 179.

The UKHSA said the risk monkeypox poses to the public remains low, but asked people to be alert to any new rashes or lesions - which appear as spots, ulcers or blisters - on any part of their body.

Although the advice applies to everyone, the majority of the cases identified so far have been among gay and bisexual men, and men who have sex with men.

The latest UKHSA advice urges those with monkeypox to not have sex from the first signs of symptoms.

Anyone who is infected should avoid close contact with others until their lesions have healed and any scabs have dried off.

People who have had contact with someone with the disease should also be risk assessed and may be told to isolate for 21 days if necessary.

The UKHSA also said people with suspected or confirmed monkeypox who need to travel in order to seek care should make sure any lesions are covered by clothing, wear a face covering, and avoid public transport where possible.

People, particularly those who are gay, bisexual or who have sex with men, are urged to call NHS 111 or a sexual health centre immediately if they have a rash with blisters and have been in close contact with someone who has or might have monkeypox in the past three weeks.

Those with symptoms are also being asked to call 111 if they have been to West or Central Africa in the past three weeks or are a man who has sex with men.

Monkeypox is related to smallpox and cases are usually found in West and Central Africa, with the virus not often spreading elsewhere.

That is why outbreaks reported in more than a dozen countries, including the UK, Portugal, Spain and the United States have caused alarm among public health experts.

The disease, which was first discovered in monkeys, is usually mild but can cause severe illness in some cases.

The incubation period of monkeypox is usually from six to 13 days, but can range from five to 21 days.

The most likely route of monkeypox transmission is close physical contact, touching clothing, bedding or towels used by someone with the monkeypox rash, or touching monkeypox skin blisters or scabs.

There is a smaller risk of it being spread through coughs and sneezes, and as prolonged face-to-face contact would be needed, this is not one of the main routes of transmission for the monkeypox virus.

Sexual intercourse is thought to expose people to a higher risk of contracting the disease as, although it is not known to be sexually transmitted, the close physical contact involved means exposure is more likely.

A majority of the cases seen so far have been in gay and bisexual men and men who have sex with men.

Professor David Heymann, the World Health Organisation’s former assistant director-general for health security and environment, is reported to have said a leading theory to explain the spread of the disease was sexual transmission at raves in Europe.

The type of monkeypox involved in the outbreak is a West African variety said to be fatal in only one per cent of cases.

Health officials said that while the outbreak is “significant and concerning”, the risk to the UK population remains low.

No deaths have been reported in the current outbreak beyond Africa.

The first case connected to the current outbreak was recorded in England on 7 May 2022.

Scotland recorded its first case on 23 May, while Wales and Northern Ireland confirmed cases on 26 May.