Although vaccines already exist to combat the spread of monkeypox, their effectiveness is controversial against this new variant that has caused an escalation of the virus, particularly in Africa, but also in Europe.
• Read also: Monkeypox: Everything you need to know about the mpox virus
The World Health Organization was forced to declare its highest level of alert in mid-August due to the rise in cases in East Africa.
The new clade 1b variant emerged in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2024 and has led to a worrying rise in cases in the region.
However, scientists have not had the opportunity to create a specific vaccine against this new variant, but the vaccine developed in 2022 could still provide protection, according to information obtained by BFMTV.
“Giving two doses of the vaccine will provide 70% to 80% protection against the onset of the disease and its severe forms,” said Olivier Schwartz, director of the Virology and Immunology Unit at the Pasteur Institute.
“The viral load of an infected person who has been vaccinated will be undetectable or very low, and the person will be protected himself and will spread the virus much less to those around him,” he added in an interview with French media.
Furthermore, a French study signed by teams from Inserm, AP-HP, Paris City University and Sorbonne University revealed that “rapid dissemination of smallpox vaccination” among men who have sexual relations with other men could “significantly reduce the risk of contracting the disease.” “Mpox (monkeypox)”.
But French Health Minister Frederic Valletto has raised doubts about the effectiveness of the vaccine already deployed against this new strain of smallpox.
He told the newspaper Tribune Sunday that “it is too early to be sure of the level of effectiveness.”
But Mr Schwartz stresses that “the vaccine is expected to be effective against clade 1b virus, although this has not been formally proven at this time.”
