MONKEYPOX figures for the West Midlands have been revealed in new government data.

According to Gov.uk data released on June 24, the region has 12 laboratory-confirmed cases of the disease, with the total across the UK rising to 1,076 confirmed cases as of Sunday, June 26.

Dr Sophia Makki, Incident director at UKHSA has said that the majority of cases have been detected in "men who are gay, bisexual or have sex with men."

She said: "The monkeypox outbreak in the UK continues to grow, with over a thousand cases now confirmed nationwide. We expect cases to continue to rise further in the coming days and weeks.

"If you are attending large events over the summer or having sex with new partners, be alert to any monkeypox symptoms so you can get tested rapidly and help avoid passing the infection on.

"Currently the majority of cases have been in men who are gay, bisexual or have sex with men.

"However, anyone who has had close contact with an individual with symptoms is also at increased risk.

"If you are concerned that you may have monkeypox, don’t go to events, meet with friends or have sexual contact. Instead, stay at home and contact 111 or your local sexual health service for advice. 

"We are grateful to all the people who have come forward so far for testing and to assist us with our contact tracing."

Symptoms of monkeypox infection can include a fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion.

According to Gov.uk, the outbreak can be considered to fall into one of four potential levels of transmission.

  • Level one- Incursions from the rest of the world – small numbers of imported cases with limited onward transmission.
  • Level two - Transmission within a defined sub-population with a high number of close contacts.
  • Level three - Transmission within multiple sub-populations or larger sub-population.
  • Level four - Wider significant community transmission – with potential for endemic and local epi-zoonotic disease.

England is currently judged to be in level two and is being closely monitored for any evidence of Level 3.