WHO Renames Monkeypox Variants To Dispel Stigma And Creates Open Forum For Name Change

Topline

The World Health Organization is inviting the public to propose new names for monkeypox and has renamed two variants of the disease, according to a statement released Friday, after weeks of criticism that the name has racist connotations and generates stigma.

People wait in line to recieve the Monkeypox vaccine before the opening of a new mass vaccination … [+] site in Brooklyn, New York City on July 17, 2022.( Photo by KENA BETANCUR)

AFP via Getty Images

Key Facts

The WHO created an open forum for proposals to alternatives for the name change of the monkeypox virus.

The U.N. health organization has renamed two “clades,” or families of the monkeypox virus to avoid the stigma associated with geographical names: The variant formerly known as “Congo Basin” will now be referred to as “Clade one or I” and the “West Africa” variant will be known as “Clade two or II.”

The WHO met with several scientists this week to discuss best naming practices for diseases, in order to avoid ”causing offense” to any “ethnic, social or professional” groups, and minimize harm to trade, travel, tourism or animals.

The organization did not mention renaming other geographically-based disease names, like the Spanish influenza, or the Middle Eastern Respiratory System.

The new names for the clades should go into effect immediately, according to the statement.

Key Background

The WHO has noted that the monkeypox virus, originally found in laboratory monkeys, was named in 1958 before current best practices in nomenclature of diseases were created. The first human case was reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970. The open forum comes nearly two months after a group of 30 scientists from Africa warned that there was an “urgent need” to change the name, because of its stigmatizing potential. According to the CDC, the virus has been reported in several other African countries and abroad. The Western outbreak of the virus started in May in the U.K., Portugal, Spain, and has spread to the U.S., Canada, France, and Germany. In addition to concerns over racist connotations and stigma for the LGBT community, it has also stirred a string of animal attacks, including the poisoning of 10 monkeys in Brazil.

Key Quote

“Current best practise is that newly-identified viruses, related disease, and virus variants should be given names with the aim to avoid causing offense to any cultural, social, national, regional, professional, or ethnic groups, and minimize any negative impact on trade, travel, tourism or animal welfare,” the statement said.

Big Number

10,768. That’s how many confirmed monkeypox cases there are in the U.S. so far, according to the CDC. There have been over 3,000 new cases reported to the WHO since June, and over 31,000 cases of monkeypox since May, but a limited supply of vaccines globally according to AP.

Tangent

Naming virus species is the responsibility of the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV), which is currently considering an alternative name for the monkeypox virus.