Monkeypox a new worry for gay and bi men

[Luv2play]

10 hours ago, Luv2play said:

First woman to contract Monkeypox reported in Ontario Canada today. Thank god.

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.  

[SirBillybob]

10 hours ago, FewBricksShy said:

Marge?!

[Kevin Slater]

Just got my appointment for Sunday.  NYC released a new batch today and this time the website didn't crash, but all slots (who you callin' a slot?) were filled in three minutes. 

Kevin Slater

[Kevin Slater]

On 7/15/2022 at 7:25 PM, Kevin Slater said:

Just got my appointment for Sunday.  NYC released a new batch today and this time the website didn't crash, but all slots (who you callin' a slot?) were filled in three minutes. 

Kevin Slater

40 minutes in a long line, three with a nurse, then they make you wait 15 minutes to be sure of no reaction.  The appointment is for a specific time, but you can disregard that and just show up at any point (on the same day, I'm guessing).  They really just want to be sure you have a QR code reflecting a reservation.  In theory we should get second shots, but they (appropriately) want to give everybody a first does first.

Kevin Slater

[+ azdr0710]

https://www.businessinsider.com/gottlieb-window-to-control-monkeypox-spread-probably-closed-2022-7

[+ m_writer]

I found this article on Queerty where a gay nurse described his symptoms on TikTok:

https://www.queerty.com/loved-florida-trip-monkeypox-blisters-appeared-20220717

This is the part that surprised me: 

Quote

He has discussed each symptom as they occurred, which gay sex venue might have exposed him to the virus, and the lesions inside his rectum that have caused him a great deal of pain.

I thought the lesions and blisters from monkeypox could only happen on skin, not on internal mucous membranes like the rectum. Because this wouldn't that mean that each time he deficates, he'd be in pain because the stool would press against his lesions? And theoretically, that could mean that the lesions can occur in other membranes other than skin like the throat, gums, or mouth.

I would love the get the vaccine, and when I get my yearly physical exam, I'll request it from my primary, but it sounds like until I can get vaccinated, I won't be hiring any time soon (not worth the risk). I mean, I haven't had sex since April, and though it can be a little frustrating, I definitely don't want to go through this.

[Tactile Daddy]

Saw this insightful article, thought many of you might find it a worthwhile read 

 

https://www.commonsense.news/p/monkeypox-what-you-actually-need?utm_medium=email

[LookingAround]

Great article thanks for sharing. 

[+ KensingtonHomo]

15 hours ago, Kevin Slater said:

40 minutes in a long line, three with a nurse, then they make you wait 15 minutes to be sure of no reaction.  The appointment is for a specific time, but you can disregard that and just show up at any point (on the same day, I'm guessing).  They really just want to be sure you have a QR code reflecting a reservation.  In theory we should get second shots, but they (appropriately) want to give everybody a first does first.

Kevin Slater

We went yesterday and our experience was very similar. 

[+ Bryan Dube]

thanks to everyone who has shared info regarding their vaccine experience. I just moved out of NYC and back to CA. Here, in SF and LA, they are still restricting who can even receive a shot so it's hard to know if i'm even eligible. And, they are not allowing appointments to be made so you just have to show up and hope that they have enough supply. the response so far has been just been frustratingly depressing.

[EastCoastBtm]

The one thing about this outbreak that has 'hit' me hard is all the references in news articles to gay sex and how much sex gay men are having.

Let me say up front - There is ZERO judgement on my part, if anything, I'm jealous.  I go months between sexual encounters, but so many of the articles I read reference the multiple partners and multiple times a week gay men are having sex.

Is there just a haves vs have nots thing going on here?  I feel more and more disconnected from the 'community' and feel like I'm not one of the cool kids.

 

I will say, monkeypox definitely sounds like it can be mild or really fucking scary.  I'll be on sexual sabbatical for a while as a result. 

 

 

[FewBricksShy]

23 minutes ago, EastCoastBtm said:

The one thing about this outbreak that has 'hit' me hard is all the references in news articles to gay sex and how much sex gay men are having.

Let me say up front - There is ZERO judgement on my part, if anything, I'm jealous.  I go months between sexual encounters, but so many of the articles I read reference the multiple partners and multiple times a week gay men are having sex.

Is there just a haves vs have nots thing going on here?  I feel more and more disconnected from the 'community' and feel like I'm not one of the cool kids.

 

I will say, monkeypox definitely sounds like it can be mild or really fucking scary.  I'll be on sexual sabbatical for a while as a result. 

 

 

I identify with several of the points here. 

[+ glutes]

10 hours ago, Tactile Daddy said:

Saw this insightful article, thought many of you might find it a worthwhile read 

 

https://www.commonsense.news/p/monkeypox-what-you-actually-need?utm_medium=email

Donald G McNeil Jr is excellent.

 

Another article, that should concern us:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/18/nyregion/new-york-monkeypox-vaccine.html

[+ nycman]

18 hours ago, m_writer said:

I thought the lesions and blisters from monkeypox could only happen on skin, not on internal mucous membranes like the rectum

That is not correct.

In fact, it can involve any mucous membrane (e.g. eyes, mouth, urethra, vagina, rectum).
Most deaths in Africa occur when oral lesions make it so that the patient can’t swallow
fluids and they become severely dehydrated.

Other potential, albeit rare, complications include corneal scaring from eye involvement 
and the inability to urinate from urethral lesions. Rectal lesions have been described as
causing pain akin to "shitting razor blades" and can lead to severe constipation. 

So while there have been no deaths in the West so far in this outbreak, the disease is 
not without significant morbidity for some. 

In my humble opinion, gay men should refrain from sexual activity until after they’ve 
been able to get vaccinated. I know it’s a pipe dream, but it’s the truth. 

[+ augustus]

Don't know why there should be a vaccine shortage for this.  It's the smallpox vaccine and we are supposed to have a national stockpile.   This was rare outside of Africa.  Hopefully it's not a mutation.

[+ augustus]

This virus is making its way into a dense sexual and social network and is exploiting close contact for spread, so yeah, people need to be restrained for a while.  

[John]

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?

[EastCoastBtm]

32 minutes 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?

Yes.  85% effective, but do some research!  Use the Google Machine....

 

https://www.health.com/news/does-smallpox-vaccine-protect-against-monkeypox

[+ glutes]

1 hour ago, augustus said:

This virus is making its way into a dense sexual and social network and is exploiting close contact for spread, so yeah, people need to be restrained for a while.  

"Wait, there's more!"  /s  

(I am with Brother Augustus. Slow down and use caution peeps.)

After the coronavirus pandemic and the rise of monkeypox cases, news of another virus can trigger nerves globally. The highly infectious Marburg virus has been reported in the West African country of Ghana this week, according to the World Health Organization.

Two unrelated people died after testing positive for Marburg in the southern Ashanti region of the country, the WHO said Sunday, confirming lab results from Ghana’s health service. The highly infectious disease is similar to Ebola and has no vaccine.

Health officials in the country say they are working to isolate close contacts and mitigate the spread of the virus, and the WHO is marshaling resources and sending specialists to the country.

“Health authorities have responded swiftly, getting a head start preparing for a possible outbreak. This is good because without immediate and decisive action, Marburg can easily get out of hand,” said the WHO’s regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti.

WaPo 18AUG2022

 

Edited July 19, 2022 by glutes

[Luv2play]

1 hour ago, EastCoastBtm said:

Yes.  85% effective, but do some research!  Use the Google Machine....

 

https://www.health.com/news/does-smallpox-vaccine-protect-against-monkeypox

Reading the literature and from what I was told at the clinic in Montreal where I got the shot a week ago, the childhood vaccine I received in tje 1950s and the booster in 1966 may offer some protection but having a vaccination now is the best thing to do to get the highest degree of protection possible. The protection of the older vaccines may have faded.

[cany10011]

1 hour ago, glutes said:

"Wait, there's more!"  /s  

(I am with Brother Augustus. Slow down and use caution peeps.)

After the coronavirus pandemic and the rise of monkeypox cases, news of another virus can trigger nerves globally. The highly infectious Marburg virus has been reported in the West African country of Ghana this week, according to the World Health Organization.

Two unrelated people died after testing positive for Marburg in the southern Ashanti region of the country, the WHO said Sunday, confirming lab results from Ghana’s health service. The highly infectious disease is similar to Ebola and has no vaccine.

Health officials in the country say they are working to isolate close contacts and mitigate the spread of the virus, and the WHO is marshaling resources and sending specialists to the country.

“Health authorities have responded swiftly, getting a head start preparing for a possible outbreak. This is good because without immediate and decisive action, Marburg can easily get out of hand,” said the WHO’s regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti.

WaPo 18AUG2022

 

Should Ghana be closing their borders now?

[kingsley88]

6 hours ago, nycman said:

That is not correct.

In fact, it can involve any mucous membrane (e.g. eyes, mouth, urethra, vagina, rectum).
Most deaths in Africa occur when oral lesions make it so that the patient can’t swallow
fluids and they become severely dehydrated.

Other potential, albeit rare, complications include corneal scaring from eye involvement 
and the inability to urinate from urethral lesions. Rectal lesions have been described as
causing pain akin to "shitting razor blades" and can lead to severe constipation. 

So while there have been no deaths in the West so far in this outbreak, the disease is 
not without significant morbidity for some. 

In my humble opinion, gay men should refrain from sexual activity until after they’ve 
been able to get vaccinated. I know it’s a pipe dream, but it’s the truth. 

I think lesions can also appear on the penis and scrotum.

A lot of the interviews I watched/read back 2 weeks ago just referred to it as the "underwear zone". 

 

 

[FewBricksShy]

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

 

Edited July 19, 2022 by FewBricksShy

[FewBricksShy]

6 hours ago, augustus said:

This virus is making its way into a dense sexual and social network and is exploiting close contact for spread, so yeah, people need to be restrained for a while.  

I believe it’s @Luv2play who says abstinence is not an effective method to combat this. Although…it is. 

[Stormy]

https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/dc-has-highest-rate-of-monkeypox-cases-per-capita/3103791/?amp=1
 

Washington DC is now ground zero for monkeypox in the US.  I live in Maryland so not eligible for DCs vaccination program unfortunately   Please be careful.