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Monkeypox in mainland China ‘only a matter of time’, says top scientist
- However, the virus is not expected to cause a large-scale epidemic in the country, according to Wu Zunyou of the Chinese CDC
- Earliest cases likely to appear in men who have sex with men, then spread to other populations, he says
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It is only a matter of time before monkeypox is found in mainland China, but a large-scale outbreak is unlikely, according to one of the country’s top epidemiologists.
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“Judging from the population and transmission methods of monkeypox in European countries and the Americas, it is only a matter of time before monkeypox is introduced into mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau,” Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, wrote on his Weibo account on Monday.
Wu said it was highly likely that the earliest monkeypox infections in mainland China would be among men who have sex with men and then spread to other populations.
“Due to the limitations of the transmission method, the speed of transmission and the scope of the population affected will be far from that of Covid,” Wu said. “In other words, the monkeypox outbreak will not cause a large-scale epidemic in the country.”
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Taiwan reported a confirmed case of monkeypox in late June. There have been no reports of monkeypox in mainland China, Hong Kong or Macau.
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