Monkeypox a new worry for gay and bi men

[LookingAround]

11 hours ago, John said:

Here's my question.  I am old.  I had the smallpox vaccine as a child in the early 1960s.  Am I protected today against monkeypox?

Absolutely not. The vaccine doesn’t last that long. 

[LookingAround]

6 hours ago, FewBricksShy said:

This thread is the height of ridiculousness. This is literally the only place I keep hearing about monkeypox.

 

You’re in a scary state of denial.

So was I at first. I thought “the numbers in nyc are so low it’s like the lottery—what are the chances?”

Then a sex buddy of mine texted me a few days later that he was very sick and he was pretty sure it was monkeypox and he was worried if I was sick. I assured him I felt fine but we had had sex only a week or so before. I called some colleagues and my friend went to a clinic and the diagnosis was confirmed. He was in a lot of pain. Not a pretty picture. Rash on his back, arms and neck. The numbers are low because they can’t do many tests per day so they just tell presumptive cases to go home and isolate. 
I’ve seen my friend on Grindr since, hooking up. So much for isolating. 
Since then two other friends have come down with it. 
It scared me so much I went to Canada to get the vaccine. NYC has been a disaster and after the very near miss I had with the pox I wasn’t going to wait for NYC to sort it out. 
Don’t be in denial please. 

Edited July 19, 2022 by LookingAround

[John]

1 hour ago, LookingAround said:

Absolutely not. The vaccine doesn’t last that long. 

Thanks for the reference.  The only article I have seen that dealt directly with my question.  Its conclusion is, however, less clear-cut than yours:

"people who received the smallpox vaccine prior to its discontinuation in 1972 likely still have some protection against the related monkeypox virus and other orthopoxviruses—it's just not entirely clear how much."

[LookingAround]

6 minutes ago, John said:

Thanks for the reference.  The only article I have seen that dealt directly with my question.  Its conclusion is, however, less clear-cut than yours:

"people who received the smallpox vaccine prior to its discontinuation in 1972 likely still have some protection against the related monkeypox virus and other orthopoxviruses—it's just not entirely clear how much."

Their evidence sounds as strong as mine. I certainly wouldn’t want to hang my risk on their words. Nobody has data.
Big risk on 50+ years after a vaccination with words like “likely…some…” and “not entirely clear…” and zero data. Big bet based on somebody’s opinion with no evidence. Other doctors have told me the OPPOSITE. 

Edited July 19, 2022 by LookingAround

[+ nycman]

One problem is that if you’re old enough to have had the Smallpox vaccine,
you are also, by definition, old. And old people have naturally have waning
immunity to everything. So yes, there is likely some protection from having
had the Smallpox vaccine. How much that protects you against Monkeypox
is anybody’s guess. Yes, there are exceptions (some people were vaccinated
after 9/11, etc), but in general it’s true. 

The bottom line is, keep your dick in your pants until you can get the vaccine,
and get the vaccine as soon as you can. It’s simple math really. 

[+ Pensant]

Unrelenting disasters. What a decade!

[curiousbynature12]

For those who either live in the Vancouver BC Area or can visit from the west coast of the US, you can go to this site to book an appointment:

https://vchcdimms.janeapp.com/

You can schedule an appointment in Victoria here: https://waitwhile.com/welcome/mpclinics

Vancouver's vaccine eligibility rules seem more restrictive than Montreal or Toronto (only close contacts of someone exposed), but they seem to have expanded it to at risk populations of MSM in general. I also have heard about Americans traveling from Seattle to Vancouver and being able to get the vaccine.

Steamworks Vancouver was in the news for offering vaccines, but I don't see details on their site on when you can go walk in for one.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/monkeypox-vaccines-offered-vancouver-bathhouses-190819412.html

 

Edited July 19, 2022 by curiousbynature12

[+ FrankR]

13 hours ago, FewBricksShy said:

This thread is the height of ridiculousness. This is literally the only place I keep hearing about monkeypox.

 

From USA Today. 

 

CBS  news earlier this week.

There - you are caught up. 🤓

[FewBricksShy]

Oh, I’ve been caught up because of the studious reporting of the diligent correspondents and epidemiologists in this forum in this very thread – my premier, singular source for all concerns Monkeypox! 

Edited July 19, 2022 by FewBricksShy

[musclvr]

Here is, what I think is, a nuanced view of the monkeypox situation with opinions from several epidemiologists. The author of the piece won an award for her coverage of the COVID pandemic.

https://www.statnews.com/2022/07/19/monkeypox-spread-many-experts-believe-the-virus-cant-be-contained/

For the TL;DR crowd, I would summarize it as:

1) there are steps on a path to containment

2) based on past and current behaviors - human and government - and the current situation, we are unlikely to execute the requisite steps

3) Therefore, monkeypox is likely to become endemic on a global basis, with a possibility to contain it in the US.

I would be more optimistic on containment in the US if vaccine weren't in such short supply.

[jerryskater]

Thanks to all members who keep us up-to-date on monkeypox with links to articles, etc.  I really appreciate your efforts.

My husband and I arrived in Montreal the afternoon of July 14.  After checking in at the Hyatt Place we walked the few blocks to the clinic arriving about 3PM with no appointment.  The intake process took maybe 15 minutes and there was no problem that we were from the U.S.  We got the shot and waited the mandatory 15 minutes.  All in all about a 40 minute visit.

I did have a rather severe reaction the next day.  Soreness and fatigue in my thighs while out sightseeing that was so severe I was in danger of falling down.  My husband and the taxi driver had to help me into the taxi.

The fatigue lessened every day but my legs were still pretty weak until July 18 when I was feeling pretty much OK.

I'm attributing this reaction to my age.  I'm going to ask my GP about it when I see him Friday.

[Kevin Slater]

@nycman @jerryskater

Quick question: which vax do they give? 

Kevin Slater

[Luv2play]

13 minutes ago, Kevin Slater said:

@nycman @jerryskater

Quick question: which vax do they give? 

Kevin Slater

They have a different name for it in Canada but it is the same vaccinev as in the US, which is known as MVA-BN. It is manufactured by a firm I believe in Denmark which is currently shut down for renovations, which unfortunately meant that countries were stuck with the supplies they had on hand in May when this virus started to spread in developed countries.

[Luv2play]

1 hour ago, jerryskater said:

Thanks to all members who keep us up-to-date on monkeypox with links to articles, etc.  I really appreciate your efforts.

My husband and I arrived in Montreal the afternoon of July 14.  After checking in at the Hyatt Place we walked the few blocks to the clinic arriving about 3PM with no appointment.  The intake process took maybe 15 minutes and there was no problem that we were from the U.S.  We got the shot and waited the mandatory 15 minutes.  All in all about a 40 minute visit.

I did have a rather severe reaction the next day.  Soreness and fatigue in my thighs while out sightseeing that was so severe I was in danger of falling down.  My husband and the taxi driver had to help me into the taxi.

The fatigue lessened every day but my legs were still pretty weak until July 18 when I was feeling pretty much OK.

I'm attributing this reaction to my age.  I'm going to ask my GP about it when I see him Friday.

Sorry to hear about your reaction. It is the first I have heard of and in my case I only had a tender spot on my arm where they put the injection.

I had exactly the same experience at the clinic as you did. They were so well organized and I suppose they benefitted from the Covid experience where the vaccine rollout all over Canada was superb, once the country got their hands on supplies which all had to be imported.

In this case the country appears to have had a good supply of the smallpox vaccine on hand to meet the emergency.

[LookingAround]

43 minutes ago, Kevin Slater said:

@nycman @jerryskater

Quick question: which vax do they give? 

Kevin Slater

Imvamune. 

[Kevin Slater]

36 minutes ago, Luv2play said:

They have a different name for it in Canada but it is the same vaccinev as in the US, which is known as MVA-BN. It is manufactured by a firm I believe in Denmark which is currently shut down for renovations, which unfortunately meant that countries were stuck with the supplies they had on hand in May when this virus started to spread in developed countries.

Thanks!

Kevin Slater

[FewBricksShy]

My eye roll reaction is bigger. 

[Quincy_7]

On 7/15/2022 at 3:31 AM, Luv2play said:

I say that because Monkeypox from the start has been stigmatized as the "gay disease". And it is not, just as AIDs wasn't either.  

 

99% of reported cases are in gay and bi men. 

This doctor has a pretty succinct breakdown of where we are:

 

 

[+ m_writer]

14 hours ago, LookingAround said:

You’re in a scary state of denial.

So was I at first. I thought “the numbers in nyc are so low it’s like the lottery—what are the chances?”

Then a sex buddy of mine texted me a few days later that he was very sick and he was pretty sure it was monkeypox and he was worried if I was sick. I assured him I felt fine but we had had sex only a week or so before. I called some colleagues and my friend went to a clinic and the diagnosis was confirmed. He was in a lot of pain. Not a pretty picture. Rash on his back, arms and neck. The numbers are low because they can’t do many tests per day so they just tell presumptive cases to go home and isolate. 
I’ve seen my friend on Grindr since, hooking up. So much for isolating. 
Since then two other friends have come down with it. 
It scared me so much I went to Canada to get the vaccine. NYC has been a disaster and after the very near miss I had with the pox I wasn’t going to wait for NYC to sort it out. 
Don’t be in denial please. 

...let me get this straight.

Your friend knows he's positive for monkeypox and he's going through painful side effects and symptoms, and rather ensure he doesn't subject anyone else to to the disease....

He's going out and hooking up? 😲

Is there a reason why he's not caring if he infects someone else?

[Lazarus]

I was able to get the vaccine Sunday. Had to go to Queens NY to get it. Unlike the COVID vaccine, I did not have any side effects from it. You should get the 2nd Monkeypox vaccine 4 to 5 weeks after the 1st one for it to be effective…so they say. Now they don’t know if they will have 2nd doses available a month from now.  So my question is: will I not be protected if I don’t get the 2nd dose within the next month?  They said I would get an email when the 2nd dose is available. 

[Kevin Slater]

17 minutes ago, Lazarus said:

I was able to get the vaccine Sunday. Had to go to Queens NY to get it. Unlike the COVID vaccine, I did not have any side effects from it. You should get the 2nd Monkeypox vaccine 4 to 5 weeks after the 1st one for it to be effective…so they say. Now they don’t know if they will have 2nd doses available a month from now.  So my question is: will I not be protected if I don’t get the 2nd dose within the next month?  They said I would get an email when the 2nd dose is available. 

I don't have the article on hand, but I read a statement by the CEO of the company that makes the vaccine saying that it has a long immune response memory (or something like that), meaning that the second dose could be given two years out and still be as effective.

Kevin Slater

[+ nycman]

36 minutes ago, Lazarus said:

So my question is: will I not be protected if I don’t get the 2nd dose within the next month?

The second shot isn’t nearly as critical as the first. The 2nd shot really
only prolongs the immunity that would otherwise start to wane after 2 years.
So as @Kevin Slater pointed out, it appears you’ve got a year or two to
get the second shot. 

https://www.science.org/content/article/there-s-shortage-monkeypox-vaccine-could-one-dose-instead-two-suffice

In fact, NYC is putting the second shot on hold until they can get their hands
on more vaccine. In the meantime they’re planning on using all available
supplies only for 1st doses. It’s a much smarter plan given the limited
supplies and the rapidly expanding outbreak.

In fact many other countries have already been using this strategy, including
Canada and the United Kingdom. 

I predict once the CDC pulls their head out of their ass, the entire USA will
be doing the same.

Edited July 20, 2022 by nycman

[LookingAround]

3 hours ago, m_writer said:

...let me get this straight.

Your friend knows he's positive for monkeypox and he's going through painful side effects and symptoms, and rather ensure he doesn't subject anyone else to to the disease....

He's going out and hooking up? 😲

Is there a reason why he's not caring if he infects someone else?

I can’t speak for him and I’m not the monkeypox police but yes he has pox and is on Grindr. Let that be a warning to all. I’m certain he’s not the only one either. Why I mentioned it. 

Edited July 20, 2022 by LookingAround

[LookingAround]

Does anybody know if the second shot is the same dose as the first shot?

[+ nycman]

17 minutes ago, LookingAround said:

Does anybody know if the second shot is the same dose as the first shot?

It is. 

https://www.fda.gov/media/131078/download