Explainer: What is monkeypox and where is it spreading?

The palms of a monkeypox case patient from Lodja, a city located within the Katako-Kombe Health Zone, are seen during a health investigation in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997. – Reuters

European and American health authorities have identified a number of monkeypox cases in recent days, mostly in young men. It's a surprising outbreak of disease that rarely appears outside Africa.

Health officials around the world are keeping watch for more cases because, for the first time, the disease appears to be spreading among people who didn’t travel to Africa. They stress, however, that the risk to the general population is low.