Italy has begun immunisation against monkeypox.
Spallanzani Hospital, Rome’s main infectious disease hospital, said on Monday that 10 people had been vaccinated and that it expected to vaccinate more than 200 people.
It stated that it is using the two-dose Jynneos vaccine, which was developed to combat the spread of smallpox but is thought to be effective against the disease as well, due to the close relationship between the smallpox and monkeypox viruses.
The vaccine can only be administered to adults.
Though the Jynneos vaccine is not new, there are no large stockpiles for the serum in Italy, according to media.
Media reports also indicated the number of vaccination requests had by late Monday surpassed 600 and was still on the rise.
The first recent Italian case of monkeypox was identified in Rome in May, and since then the country has identified at least 545 cases.
Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease that most frequently arises in the tropical rain forests of central and west Africa, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Fever, open sores, rashes, and swollen lymph nodes are among the symptoms.
The World Health Organization has officially declared that the current multi-country monkeypox outbreak outside of Africa’s traditional endemic areas has already become a public health emergency of international concern.
