Monkeypox

[lady_*nix]

Anyone else been following this?

Unlike with COVID, this is a previously known virus, and there have been outbreaks before (though I don't think any as large as this one). And it is less transmissable. But hashtags like #MonkeypoxIsAirborneToo are already trending on Twitter, which IMO shows pretty well how how much the CDC has demolished anyone's trust in them.

And in point of fact, I am worried. Because a) the virus can be easily transmitted by fomites and touch, which is still a pretty fucking big problem. And b) while it's less deadly than COVID, 1% case fatality rate is still pretty fucking deadly vs. e.g. flu, and also as someone on a TNF blocker it would be far more deadly to me in particular.

Also? Coinfection with this and COVID would probably be nasty as fuck.

IDK basically it would be nice if "normal people" started taking any of this shit seriously at all, instead of "OMG the pandemic is over yay!"

[SciFiFisher]

The good news is there is a Monkey Pox vaccine that has been thoroughly tested and vetted. It has been around for years. If there is an outbreak near you then it would make sense to talk to your doctor about getting it.

[lady_*nix]

@Fisher

At least a few cases have cropped up in MA, but the smallpox vaccine is basically unavailable right now AFAICT. For anyone. Including active duty military folks.

Also the CDC is trying to spin this as a disease which mainly affects "men who have sex with men", which is a category I fall into as a bi trans woman, so LMAO good luck getting anyone to care. (This even though it's well known to spread by skin contact, any skin contact, more than sexual contact specifically.)

Also the case fatality rate is usually higher than news media have mostly been reporting, more like 3-6%. Nobody's died of it so far, but that's kind of not surprising; COVID also can take a couple weeks to kill someone. Last I checked at least 31 people are hospitalized, out of at least 408 cases. And while normally the mortality would probably be lower in the US and other countries with more advanced/available medical care, right now our hospitals are already overwhelmed with COVID patients, so a lot of people will just not be getting care.

Basically I'm trying not to be unduly pessimistic about this, but it doesn't look too different right now than the very early days of the COVID pandemic. CDC downplaying it and telling everyone not to panic, while dropping the ball completely. Kinda like they're still doing right now with COVID.