After being linked to numerous monkeypox cases in Madrid, Italy, and Tenerife, the Gran Canarian pride festival, which drew 80,000 people from across Europe, is being investigated.
JUST IN – Gran Canaria gay pride festival attended by 80,000 from all of Europe investigated as #monkeypox superspreader event.https://t.co/zuQfzQErNU
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) May 21, 2022
Maspalomas Pride, which takes place between May 5 and 15, attracts visitors from all over the world.
It was attended by people who later tested positive for the monkeypox virus, with Canary Islands public health officials looking into any possible links between the cases and the LGBT+ celebrations.
Authorities are attempting to contain an outbreak that has spread throughout Europe and beyond, with 92 confirmed cases and dozens more suspected.
After a total of 20 cases were reported, cases of monkeypox in the UK have doubled in just a week.
Doctors have warned that as the virus spreads across Europe and as far as the United States, Canada, and Australia, the number will rise dramatically.
With more than 50 known cases, Spain now has the highest number of infections outside of Africa’s endemic areas.
According to a health source, “Among the 30 or so diagnosed in Madrid, there are several who attended the event, although it is not yet possible to know if one of them is patient zero of this outbreak or if they all got infected there.”
In the Canary Islands, there are three suspected cases of men, one of which is linked to the LGBT+ festival.
The experts said there is no conclusive evidence that the latest outbreak is sexually transmitted rather than simply passed between people in close proximity. However, because the known outbreaks occurred at events and locations that attracted large numbers of people from across the LGBT+ community, gay men are thought to be more likely to contract the disease.
The news comes after it was revealed that Spanish authorities are looking into confirmed cases of monkeypox linked to a sauna,’ which in Spain refers to establishments popular with gay men seeking sex rather than just a bathhouse.
In a report by the Spanish news website, a spokesperson for the department confirmed that one of the Italian men infected with the virus was in the Canary Islands, but denied knowing if the man from Tenerife had traveled there.
A second Italian man who was also in the Canary Islands contracted the virus. All three Italian men were admitted to the Spallanzani Institute of Infectious Diseases in Rome.
“These are three young men who say they have not had contact with each other, although two of them do explain that they have recently traveled to the Canary Islands,” The center’s director, Francesco Vaia said.
According to the WHO, many of the known patients are gay men who were tested after visiting STI clinics.
Gay and bisexual men should be on the lookout for new unexplained rashes, according to health officials.
Although monkeypox is not a sexually transmitted disease, experts warn that it can be spread through skin-to-skin contact during sex.
Sources: Westernjournal, Apnews, Theguardian, Newsweek