Biased Studies and Sampling from LGBTQ Communities Created a Next-Level Social Stigma in Monkeypox: A Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC)

Abstract

Since 2020, we are witnessing a COVID-19 pandemic that has ruled out all other pandemics ever happened in our history. Countries are still not able to manage the COVID-19 threat properly, and while we are still dealing with it, here comes another deadly infectious disease, monkeypox. Rapid circulation of monkeypox infections worldwide has forced the WHO to declared it as PHEIC. As per the current reports available on WHO, though the monkeypox is alarmingly spreading, but this threat seems to be quite manageable if dealt properly with smallpox vaccine and other antibiotic regimens in proper place. Key challenge now is actually how to control misinformation and misleading news that flooded the social media and news outlets. We have gathered studies available on the PubMed search engine since the starting of 2022, and also collected relevant information from WHO and other reliable news sources. As on 27.07.2022, WHO reported 19,178 laboratory confirmed cases, and out of these, on the white paper, only for 31.8% cases, there was recorded information about the sexual orientation. But if we look at the scientific publications and social media, it is only men having sex with men (MSM) who are the main victims and having monkeypox infections. Same message is being circulated to the common public through such channels. It is thus becoming responsibility of WHO, government and public health agencies to properly guide the public and aware them about the misleading information. Further, the presence of monkeypox DNA in the urine and feces have again showcased the role of wastewater management and proper surveillance.