Australia has said that the spread of monkeypox was now a "communicable disease incident of national significance" to allow for a more coordinated response,following the World Health Organization's declaration of a global health emergency.
Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said in a statement that the National Incident Centre had been activated to enhance coordination across Australia's states and territories to manage the outbreak.
He said there had been 44 cases of monkeypox in Australia, with most cases in returned international travellers, and around the world this year there had been 20,311 cases in 71 countries that have not historically reported monkeypox cases.
Mr Kelly said the disease is less harmful and far less transmissible than Covid-19.
The WHO declared the outbreak a global health emergency on Saturday.
The European Medicines Agency has confirmed that its Emergency Task Force (ETF) is being formally extended to deal with both Covid-19 and monkeypox.
A consultant in Infectious diseases at St Vincent's University Hospital and Professor of Microbial Diseases at UCD has said that while the smallpox vaccine to help manage the virus is being distributed in Ireland, there is likely to be a global shortage.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Professor Paddy Mallon said that at moment "the focus for public health has been on identifying people who are defined as close contacts of cases of monkeypox.
"Over the coming weeks the programme will expand to include those people that are considered to be at high risk. At the moment that high-risk group is identified as gay and bisexual men who have sex with men.
"Hopefully the outbreak can be contained before spreading outside of that group."
He said: "Everyone who is at risk of this really needs to be aware of the symptoms to look out for. The symptoms can come on anywhere between three to five weeks after contact with someone.
"People may notice a flu like illness with fevers, muscle aches and headaches. Then what can develop are swollen glands and then pox lesions, which are skin lesions. They look like fluid filled blisters. They can grow over time and they can be quite painful."
Yesterday, the WHO called on the group currently most affected by the virus - men who have sex with men - to limit their sexual partners.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the best way to protect against infection was "to reduce the risk of exposure".
"For men who have sex with men, this includes, for the moment, reducing your number of sexual partners, reconsidering sex with new partners, and exchanging contact details with any new partners to enable follow-up if needed," he said.
Scientists advising the WHO on monkeypox have said that the window is closing to stop its spread, with cases currently doubling every two weeks, raising concerns that it will take several months for the outbreak to peak.
