Latest news with #sexualhealthclinics
The Australian
3 days ago
- Health
- The Australian
Queensland Health confirms rare strain of monkeypox detected in Metro South region
An urgent health alert has been issued after a strain of monkeypox - confirmed to be a strain known to cause a widespread 'pox-like' rash - was detected in a returned Australian travelled. Queensland Health confirmed the case of monkeypox (Mpox) was detected in the state's Metro South region. Testing revealed it to be the Clade 1 strain of the virus - marking the second time in history the more serious strain has ever been detected in Australia. A Clade 1 strain of the monkeypox virus was detected in a returned Australian traveller, Queensland Health has confirmed. Picture: Supplied The case was acquired overseas but authorities say the risk to the wider community is very low. Queensland Health confirmed exposure to the public had been limited and contact tracing was underway after the detection. According to the Australian Immunisation Handbook, the symptoms of Mpox can include fever, swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, headache and muscle aches, followed by a rash within 2-4 days of infection. It spreads primarily through close or intimate contact. Complications of the virus can range from bacterial infections to enciphalitus and pneumonia. The Clade 1 strain of the virus is known cause higher numbers of severe illnesses. Queensland Health said public exposure has been limited. Picture: NewsWire/Glenn Campbell Free Mpox vaccines are available to high-risk groups through sexual health clinics and GPs. 'Vaccination is available for post-exposure prophylaxis as well as primary preventive vaccination. High risk groups, including all sexually active gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and their partners, are eligible for free vaccines through sexual health clinics and general practitioners,' Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Tim Nicholls said. Minister for Health Tim Nicholls said Queensland health was monitoring the situation. Picture: NewsWire/Tertius Pickard Two doses are recommended for optimal protection. Those travelling to areas with Clade 1 transmission are encouraged to get vaccinated before departure. Queensland Health is monitoring the situation.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Queensland Health confirms Clade 1 strain of monkeypox detected, second time ever for Australia
An urgent health alert has been issued after a strain of monkeypox - confirmed to be a strain known to cause a widespread 'pox-like' rash - was detected in a returned Australian travelled. Queensland Health confirmed the case of monkeypox (Mpox) was detected in the state's Metro South region. Testing revealed it to be the Clade 1 strain of the virus - marking the second time in history the more serious strain has ever been detected in Australia. The case was acquired overseas but authorities say the risk to the wider community is very low. Queensland Health confirmed exposure to the public had been limited and contact tracing was underway after the detection. According to the Australian Immunisation Handbook, the symptoms of Mpox can include fever, swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, headache and muscle aches, followed by a rash within 2-4 days of infection. It spreads primarily through close or intimate contact. Complications of the virus can range from bacterial infections to enciphalitus and pneumonia. The Clade 1 strain of the virus is known cause higher numbers of severe illnesses. Free Mpox vaccines are available to high-risk groups through sexual health clinics and GPs. 'Vaccination is available for post-exposure prophylaxis as well as primary preventive vaccination. High risk groups, including all sexually active gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and their partners, are eligible for free vaccines through sexual health clinics and general practitioners,' Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Tim Nicholls said. Two doses are recommended for optimal protection. Those travelling to areas with Clade 1 transmission are encouraged to get vaccinated before departure. Queensland Health is monitoring the situation.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Second case of rare mpox strain discovered in traveller
A rare strain of mpox, only seen once in Australia, has been detected in an overseas traveller. A case of the Clade 1 strain of mpox has been confirmed in a patient in Queensland's Metro South Hospital and Health Service region, the state's health body said. The patient is believed to have acquired mpox overseas before arriving in Australia, state Health Minister Tim Nicholls said. "Contact tracing has been occurring, and the community can be assured that exposure to members of the community has been very limited, and the public should not be concerned," he said on Saturday. The detection is the second incidence of the mpox strain reported in Australia after a returned traveller tested positive for the virus in NSW in May. Mpox is a viral infection that typically displays mild symptoms of fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes or fatigue, followed by a skin rash or lesions. The disease does not easily spread between people and mostly occurs through very close or intimate contact with someone infected. Groups at higher risk of infection include sexually active gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men and their partners. Health authorities say vaccinations for pre- and post-exposure to the disease are effective and are available for free through sexual health clinics and general practitioners. #mpox remains a public health emergency of international concernThe announcement follows the fourth meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee regarding the upsurge of mpox. The Committee advised the Director-General @DrTedros to extend the public health emergency of international… — World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) June 9, 2025 Two doses of vaccine are needed for optimal protection, with vaccination reducing the risk of infection and severe disease. The World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern in August 2024. The disease was first detected in Australia in 2022, with the number of cases spiking to more than 1400 in 2024, according to Australia's National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System. There have been about 150 confirmed cases of mpox in 2025. Men make up the majority of reported notifications, accounting for more than 1700 of all confirmed cases.
The Guardian
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
The gonorrhoea vaccine is an incredible breakthrough. It could also be a terrible missed opportunity
Last week, the UK announced a world first in sexual health programming: a vaccine that can protect against infection by gonorrhoea bacteria is to be made available in sexual health clinics across England, Scotland and Wales. Now comes the rollout – which will require avoiding the mistakes of the past to make sure it reaches those most in need. The vaccine has offered hope for intervention in an otherwise concerning landscape of increasing numbers of cases of gonorrhoea infection demonstrating resistance to treatment by antibiotics and with infection rates at their highest since records began. Although it can occur without noticeable signs of infection, for most people gonorrhoea will be experienced as a set of uncomfortable symptoms, such as pain or fluid discharge in the genitals, anus, throat or even eyes. If left untreated, gonorrhoea can result in serious complications, including pelvic inflammatory disease, which can lead to infertility in people with a womb and ovaries (who are less likely to experience telltale symptoms in the first place). When it is launched in August, the gonorrhoea vaccine will first be offered to gay men, bisexual men and men who have sex with men (GBMSM), who, according to the most recent data, are the individuals most likely to test positive in the UK. Especially where resources are limited (ie in the real world of healthcare delivery), vaccination programmes are most successful when they are targeted to the groups or individuals at the highest risk of infection. Indeed, a model produced by researchers in 2022 has suggested that a successful programme of gonorrhoea vaccination among GBMSM in England at the highest risk of infection could prevent more than 100,000 cases of gonorrhoea over 10 years and, crucially, save the NHS an estimated £7.9m. The predicted cost-saving of a gonorrhoea vaccination programme is particularly welcome for sexual health services in the UK that have faced upwards of £1bn in cuts since 2015. However, this decade of cuts poses a risk to the success of a gonorrhoea vaccination programme. For one, widespread divestments from sexual health have not been experienced homogeneously. Access to sexual health services, where these vaccines are given, is increasingly a postcode lottery. Even in better-resourced areas such as London, where rates of gonorrhoea transmission are highest, appointments at overstretched and underfunded clinics can be hard to come by and inconveniently timed. Research shows us that a de facto 'first come, first served' model of appointment provision disproportionately favours people who are older and better off – who typically have more flexible schedules – and creates particular barriers for immigrants to the UK, who are less likely to have the cultural and linguistic fluency to navigate convoluted processes for accessing appointments. That said, even when appointments are available, many people will continue to experience enormous barriers to accessing services. First- or secondhand experiences of clinical and medical racism, distrust, fears of judgment and stigma, shame and avoidance, and a lack of access to culturally competent care and information collude to distance historically marginalised groups – especially Black communities in the UK – from in-person clinical settings. It is these very barriers that contribute to the disproportionate infection rates among Black communities – especially Black GBMSM, who are therefore among those in most urgent need of access to effective vaccinations. Recent successes combating mpox outbreaks among GBMSM, however, demonstrate for those from marginalised backgrounds, there are effective avenues to deliver vaccines other than just sexual health clinics. Since 2022, the Love Tank – a London-based nonprofit that works to improve the health and wellbeing of underserved communities – has worked hand in hand with NHS partners to provide vaccinations against mpox (and, among other diseases, Covid) in community settings in an attempt to deliver services to people less likely to access them in clinics. With pop-ups at sex-on-premises venues, community centres, queer bars, clubs, parties, sex shops and Pride events (including three years running at UK Black Pride), these under the radar (UTR) events have been able to deliver hundreds of vaccinations to people – mostly queer people of colour and queer immigrants – who would probably not otherwise have received them. The development of suitable and effective vaccines is always the first stage of a multi-faceted project of inoculation. Vaccines that work, biomedically speaking, require systems that work. The next steps are more funding for starved bricks-and-mortar services, and continued investment in creative and effective methods for delivering services direct to the community, and for the partners that can help achieve this. Benjamin Weil is a writer and researcher. He is the head of research and community knowledge generation at The Love Tank CIC
