Lay media reporting of monkeypox in Nigeria

### Summary box In October 2017, the first confirmed case of a monkeypox outbreak was reported in Bayelsa State, Nigeria, although suspected cases started to be reported in September 2017. 1 It continues to this day, with exported cases reaching the UK, Israel and Singapore.2 3 Prior to this outbreak, the disease was last reported in Nigeria in 1978.4 Monkeypox is an orthopox virus, closely related to smallpox, that produces vesicopapular lesions on the skin. Symptoms are usually self-limiting and most people recover within weeks. Severe illness and death usually only occurs among immunosuppressed individuals.5 When the first cases were announced in Nigeria, media reports exaggerated the symptoms and impact of the outbreak. The outbreak generated front page headlines, with one title describing it as a ‘new airborne Ebola’.6 A European headline (from the Voice of Europe) was ‘ Horrible Nigerian disease called monkeypox spreads in the United Kingdom for the first time’ . The media used unverified pictures of people with skin rashes, to amplify their messages.7 There may be substantial discrepancies between what the National Public Health Institute …