(Reuters) – Over 30 countries where monkeypox is not endemic have reported outbreaks of the viral disease, with more than 550 confirmed or suspected infections mostly in Europe.
The outbreaks are raising alarm because monkeypox, which spreads through close contact and was first found in monkeys, mostly occurs in west and central Africa, and only very occasionally spreads elsewhere.
Below is a list of non-endemic countries that have so far reported suspected or confirmed cases, in alphabetical order:
ASIA-PACIFIC
* AUSTRALIA, which on May 20 reported its first case, had confirmed five cases as of June 3.
EUROPE
* AUSTRIA confirmed its first case on May 22.
* BELGIUM detected its first two cases on May 20 and a total of 10 by May 31.
* CZECH REPUBLIC detected its first case on May 24, reaching a total of five as of June 2.
* DENMARK confirmed first case on May 23 and a total of three as of June 3.
* FINLAND confirmed its first case on May 27.
* FRANCE had confirmed 33 cases by June 1.
* GERMANY reported the first case on May 20 and a total of 33 by May 29.
* HUNGARY reported its first case on May 31.
* IRELAND confirmed its first case on May 28, and is suspecting a second one.
* ITALY had detected 20 cases as of June 1 since its first on May 19, and is suspecting one more.
* LATVIA confirmed first case on June 3.
* The NETHERLANDS, which reported first case on May 20, had confirmed 40 of them as of June 2.
* NORWAY reported its first case on May 31.
* PORTUGAL confirmed five new cases on June 3, bringing the total to 143.
* SLOVENIA has reported two cases since its first one on May 24.
* SPAIN confirmed 13 new cases on June 2, bringing the total to 156.
* SWEDEN confirmed its first case on May 19 and a total of five by June 2.
* SWITZERLAND confirmed its first case on May 21.
* The UNITED KINGDOM had confirmed 183 cases as of June 1.
MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA
* ISRAEL confirmed its first case on May 21.
* MOROCCO reported its first case on June 2.
* The UNITED ARAB EMIRATES reported three cases on May 30, bringing the total to four after its first on May 24.
AMERICAS
* ARGENTINA confirmed its first case on May 27.
* CANADA had confirmed 58 infections as of June 2.
* MEXICO confirmed its first case on May 28.
* The UNITED STATES had confirmed 21 cases in 10 states by June 2.
(Compiled by Andrey Sychev, Louise Rasmussen and Alizee Degorce in Gdansk; Editing by Milla Nissi and Mark Potter)
