Canadians who are at high risk of contracting monkeypox – not just those who have been infected – should be vaccinated, according to new guidelines from the national body that provides advice to the government on vaccines.
After reviewing the current state of the monkeypox epidemic in Canada, the National Immunization Advisory Committee (NACI) came up with new guidelines on Friday that anyone at high risk of being exposed to a probable or confirmed case of monkeypox, or someone who is visited the environment where the transmission of the virus occurs, you should receive one dose of Imvamune vaccine.
The NACI also said vaccines could be offered to those with weakened immunity, pregnant or breastfeeding, or children and adolescents if they are at higher risk of exposure.
Imvamune, which is commonly used to treat smallpox, is approved by Health Canada for the treatment of monkeypox.
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Ideally, those who have been exposed to the virus should be vaccinated within four days of exposure, said Canada’s chief health officer, Theresa Tam, during a briefing in Ottawa on Friday.
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“NACI’s recommendation is to offer a dose to someone who knows they have been in contact with a case or have been at high risk,” she said.
The recommendations state that a second dose should be offered only in limited circumstances.
Local public health authorities are working with companies and communities where outbreaks occur in Canada to identify places where there may have been exposure, and they are contacting people who may have been exposed to the virus in those places, he said. There.
Given the extent of outbreaks so far, mass vaccination against monkeypox is not currently needed, she added.
“For the general population, the risk is currently low.”
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As of Friday, there are at least 112 confirmed cases of monkeypox in Canada, and all infected are men.
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This includes 98 cases in Quebec, nine in Ontario, four in Alberta and one in British Columbia, and other alleged cases are being investigated.
Monkeypox is spread mainly through close physical contact, including intimate sexual contact, or exposure to scabs or body fluids, or even contaminated bedding.
Most of the cases in Canada now are among men who have had sexual contact with other men, although the virus can spread to anyone who has had contact with an infected person, Tam said.
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There he said the Public Health Agency of Canada is working with vaccine manufacturers to ensure sufficient supplies of Imvamune vaccine in the future.
Canada has “no unlimited supplies” of the vaccine, Dr Howard Nju, France’s deputy chief public health officer, told a French briefing on Friday.
“But with a good strategic approach, with a sensible approach, we believe it is possible to control the hearth.
– with files from The Canadian Press.
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