Quebec tops 200 confirmed cases of monkeypox

Quebec health officials are reporting a total of 202 confirmed cases of monkeypox in the province to date.

The latest figure issued Tuesday is a rise of 18 from the previous update of 184 infections declared last week.

The province’s health department also reported that 7,568 doses of smallpox vaccine Imvamune have been administered since May 27.

Quebec recorded the first cases of monkeypox in Canada last month, with the first suspected infections reported on May 12 in Montreal. Two weeks ago, public health officials said the city was the epicentre of the outbreak.

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Monkeypox is a rare disease that stems from the same family of viruses that causes smallpox, which the World Health Organization declared eradicated around the globe in 1980.

It spreads through prolonged intimate contact, but it is not very contagious in a typical social setting. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, exhaustion, swollen lymph nodes and lesions.

— with files from The Canadian Press

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