Monkey pox – monkeypox in English – will now be called mpox, including in other languages, announced Monday, November 28, the World Health Organization (WHO). The two names will coexist for a period of a year before the term monkeypox is dropped, although it can still be searched for in the international classification of diseases, the WHO said.

“The issue of using the new name in different languages ​​was discussed at length. The preferred term mpox may be used in other languages ​​», underlined the WHO. If this name were to pose a problem in a language, the WHO would initiate consultations with the competent government authorities and the scientific societies concerned, before deciding.

When the outbreak of monkeypox cases emerged from spring 2022 “Racist and stigmatizing language online, in other settings and in certain communities has been observed and reported to WHO”prompting a number of countries and individuals or organizations to request a name change, recalls the organization.

Over 80,000 cases and 55 deaths reported in 110 countries

Mpox will then completely replace monkeypox. “This serves to alleviate concerns raised by experts about the confusion caused by a name change in the midst of a global outbreak. » Monkeypox gets its name from the fact that the virus was originally identified in monkeys for research in Denmark in 1958, but the disease is most commonly found in rodents.

It was first reported in humans in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The spread in humans was until the spring limited to certain West African countries where it is endemic.

In May, cases of monkeypox, which causes fever, muscle aches and skin lesions, began to appear rapidly around the world, mostly among men who have sex with men. Some 81,000 cases and 55 deaths have been reported to WHO this year, in 110 countries.