Monkeypox not proven as a sexually transmittable disease

 Monkeypox is not proven to be a sexually transmittable disease and it is not clinically proven that it is a disease which mostly affects homosexuals, a Sri Lankan expert said yesterday.

Senior Lecturer Department of Immunology and Molecular Biology Prof. Chandima Jeewandara told Daily Mirror that Monkeypox is not a sexually transmittable disease.

“Monkeypox is yet to be proven to be a sexually transmittable disease while it is not clinically proven that mostly homosexuals fall victim to the disease. Larger number of patients out of the 15,000 globally reported cases are gay people but nothing is proved yet.

However according to data released by the World Health Organization (WHO), the disease could spread through casual contact including skin to skin, mouth to mouth and also through sexual contact. According to WHO, it is not proven that the virus could spread through bodily fluids such as semen, virginal fluid, or breast milk.

Meanwhile Dr. Jeewandara warned on Sunday that the disease could enter Sri Lanka and precautions should be taken to prevent the disease.

WHO during the weekend declared Monkeypox as a global pandemic.