Monkeypox disease now has a new name: mpox. The World Health Organization announced the long-awaited change on Monday, saying the disease’s original name plays into “racist and stigmatizing language.”
But it will take time to replace a term that has been used for decades. The first human monkeypox case was recorded in 1970. The virus was initially detected years earlier, in captive monkeys.
“Both names will be used simultaneously for one year while ‘monkeypox’ is phased out,” WHO said.
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