Monkeypox Outbreak in Peru

Abstract

Monkeypox (Mpox) is a zoonotic disease caused by the Orthopoxvirus monkeypox virus (MPXV). Since 1970, outbreaks of MPXV have occurred in several Sub-Saharan African countries. However, from May 2022 to April 2023, recent outbreaks of Mpox occurred in several countries outside of Africa, and these cases quickly spread to over 100 non-endemic countries on all continents. Most of these cases were found in the region of the Americas and the Europe region. In Latin America, the highest all-age Mpox rates per million inhabitants were in Peru, Colombia, Chile, and Brazil. Given its global impact, Mpox was declared as an international Public Health Emergency by WHO in July 2022. MPXV infection disproportionately affects men who have sex with men and members of the HIV-infected population. Vaccination is the current strategy for controlling and preventing Mpox in high-risk groups. In this context, Peru has the fourth-highest number of Mpox cases in Latin America and faces significant challenges in disease control. Because of this, in this review, we discuss the epidemiology, public health indicators, and prevention of Mpox in the 2022 Peru outbreak so that health authorities can join forces to control MPXV transmission.