The World Health Organization (WHO) renamed monkeypox. UN News reports.
WHO approved the new term mpox as a synonym for monkeypox. Both terms will be used simultaneously for a year before the monkeypox name is phased out.
The decision was made in the wake of reports of racist and stigmatizing language surrounding the name of the disease.
WHO assigns names to new and, very exceptionally, existing diseases, through a consultative process.
Medical and scientific experts, representatives from government authorities from 45 countries, as well as the general public, were invited to submit their suggestions.
The term mpox will be included in the classification in the coming days and will enter the official publication in 2023.
The monkeypox name was given in 1970, some 12 years after the virus that causes the disease was discovered in captive monkeys. This was before WHO first published best practices on naming diseases in 2015. These guidelines recommend that new disease names should aim to minimize unnecessary negative impacts on trade, travel, tourism or animal welfare. They should also avoid offending any cultural, social, national, regional, professional or ethnic groups.
