Monkeypox between dermatology and anthropology: A model for evolutionary medicine

In their recent communication, Czinn and Hoenig offered a useful overview of the history of the names used in contemporary medicine to refer to such diseases as smallpox, monkeypox (Mpox), chickenpox, and syphilis, detailing when both technical and more popular definitions emerged in the past. With special reference to smallpox, syphilis, and chickenpox, their work provides a link with current research on their antiquity and evolution. Regarding the present Mpox epidemic, we concur with the authors that, following the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO), one should be concerned that “we do not use the monkeypox outbreak to discriminate against a continent or to stigmatize a particular demographic group.”1 Notwithstanding, available data on the current epidemic provide room for thorough reflection on this condition, both about the importance it has for clinical dermatologists and, more broadly, about its evolutionary aspects...