Infodemic and the fear of monkeypox: call for action

Ramadan Abdelmoez Farahat; Michael G Head; Samar Tharwat; Yasmeen Alabdallat; Mohammad Yasir Essar; Basel Abdelazeem; Mounir Ould Setti

doi:10.1186/s41182-022-00459-8

Infodemic and the fear of monkeypox: call for action

Trop Med Health. 2022 Sep 5;50(1):63. doi: 10.1186/s41182-022-00459-8.

Authors

Ramadan Abdelmoez Farahat^{1

2}, Michael G Head³, Samar Tharwat^{4

5}, Yasmeen Alabdallat^{4

6}, Mohammad Yasir Essar^{7

8}, Basel Abdelazeem^{4

9

10}, Mounir Ould Setti^{4

11

12}

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Medicine, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh, 33511, Egypt. ramadan.med_2587@med.kfs.edu.eg.
² Global Research Group (GRG), Kafrelsheikh, Egypt. ramadan.med_2587@med.kfs.edu.eg.
³ Clinical Informatics Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
⁴ Global Research Group (GRG), Kafrelsheikh, Egypt.
⁵ Rheumatology and Immunology Unit, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt.
⁶ Faculty of Medicine, Hashemite University, Zarqa, Jordan.
⁷ Global Research Group (GRG), Kafrelsheikh, Egypt. yasir.essar@gmail.com.
⁸ Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan. yasir.essar@gmail.com.
⁹ Department of Internal Medicine, McLaren Health Care, Flint, MI, 48532, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Internal Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48823, USA.
¹¹ Institute of Public Health and Clinical Nutrition, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.
¹² Global Database Studies, IQVIA, Espoo, Finland.

Abstract

Monkeypox (MPX) was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization (WHO), as of July 23^rd, 2022. Fake news spread on social media has already surfaced and contributed to worsening of this concerning situation, making it difficult for the health care experts' voices to be heard. Therefore, we recommend some solutions to overcome this situation, including raising public awareness and preventing stigma through sharing engagement with civil society organizations, and better cooperation between policymakers, the medical community, and social media platforms regarding providing accurate official news about MPX. WHO-one health approach should be established and prioritized.

Keywords: Fake news; Infodemic; Monkeypox; Social media; Stigma.

Publication types

Letter