On Friday, Chile's Ministry of Health (Minsal) announced that the country would start the vaccination of priority groups amid limitations of monkeypox vaccines in the international context.
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Through his official Twitter account, Undersecretary for Public Health Cristóbal Cuadrado said, "We expect to begin the first stage of the inoculation process during October."
The vaccine to be used for the immunization process in the country will be the Jynneos vaccine from the Bavarian Nordic laboratory. It was obtained through the Pan American Health Organization's Revolving Fund.
The first stage will include those "close contacts of confirmed cases of monkeypox who are at risk of severe disease, i.e., immunosuppressed people, HIV patients, and pregnant women," Cuadrado said.
Good news! We have managed to secure the supply of the #ViruelaDelMono vaccine, which is already being used successfully in other countries and has proven to be safe and effective. His name is “Jynneos.”
In the second stage, "people who engage in high-risk sexual practices, with an indication of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, or with HIV infection" should be integrated into the vaccination plan, according to CAVEI.
The undersecretary said that people in close contact with a confirmed case could reduce the risk of developing the disease by being vaccinated during the first few days after the contact.
On monkeypox symptoms, Cuadrado said, "skin or mucosal lesions, maybe many or even just one and tend to be concentrated on the face, palms of the hands, soles of the feet, mouth or in the genital and anal area."
Chile has more than 450 confirmed monkeypox virus cases, declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) a global emergency.
The American continent has become the new epicenter of the disease, with over 30 000 million cases, the Pan American Health Organization said this week. U.S., Brazil, Peru, Canada, and Mexico are the countries with the highest number of reported cases.