Canada’s top public health officials say they are looking at the possible use of smallpox vaccines against monkeypox, after the first two cases of monkeypox infections in the country were confirmed in Quebec this week.
“Based on what we know globally, the smallpox vaccines can be applied to monkeypox. In particular, there is one [vaccine] that has monkeypox included in its labelling,” she said.
While smallpox was eradicated in the 1980s, Tam said Canada still has a “limited supply” of vaccines for the virus—as do many other countries—though she refused to disclose the exact number Canada has in stock, citing “security reasons.”
Monkeypox’s overall risk to the Canadian population is low, deputy chief public health officer Dr. Howard Njoo said on May 20, though he added that the public should remain vigilant about the virus and be informed about its symptoms and how it is transmitted.
“Signs and symptoms of monkeypox can typically include fever, headache, muscle aches, exhaustion, and swollen lymph nodes, and a rash that often appears within a few days after symptoms such as fever develop,” the statement reads.
“Person to person spread of monkeypox is uncommon. However, when spread does occur between people the mode of transmission is through close contact with an infected individual, such as through direct contact with their body fluids, respiratory droplets, or monkeypox sores, or by sharing clothing, bedding or common items that have been contaminated with the infected person’s fluids or sores.”
On May 19, PHAC confirmed that two people in Quebec have tested positive for monkeypox, and that they were the first-ever reported in the country. The agency said about 20 others in the province are also under investigation for being potentially infected with the disease.
PHAC is also working with U.S. public health authorities to investigate potential contacts of an infected U.S. citizen who recently travelled to Canada. The man travelled by private transportation, and may have been infected before or during his visit to Montreal.
Tam said the cases in Quebec and the recent reports of cases around the world are unusual, as the disease is mostly found in parts of central and western Africa.
“So far, we do know that not many of these individuals are connected to travel to Africa where the disease is normally seen. So this is unusual. It’s unusual for the world, to see this many cases reported in different countries outside of Africa,” she said.
“We don’t understand enough. There’s probably been some hidden chains of transmission that could have occurred for quite a number of weeks, given the sort of global situation that we’re seeing right now.”
Cases of monkeypox are being investigated in the United States, Australia, and several European countries, including Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
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