Since May this year, monkeypox cases have been reported in many non endemic countries in the world. In order to prepare for the medical response to monkeypox in advance and improve the ability of early clinical identification and standardized diagnosis and treatment, the National Health Commission and the State Administration of traditional Chinese medicine organized and formulated the guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of monkeypox (2022). According to the guidelines, monkeypox is a zoonotic viral disease caused by monkeypox virus infection. Clinically, the main manifestations are fever, rash and lymph node enlargement. The main source of infection is rodents infected with monkeypox virus. Primates (including monkeys, chimpanzees, humans, etc.) can also become the source of infection after infection. How does monkeypox virus spread? The guidelines point out that the virus invades the human body through mucous membranes and damaged skin. People are mainly infected by contacting the exudates, blood and other body fluids of infected animals, or being bitten or scratched by infected animals. Human to human transmission is mainly through close contact, but also through droplet transmission. Contact with items contaminated by the virus may also be infected, and it can also be transmitted vertically through the placenta. Sexual transmission cannot be ruled out. The guideline points out that monkeypox is a self limiting disease, and most of them have a good prognosis. Severe cases are common in young children and people with low immune function. The prognosis is related to the infected virus branch, the degree of virus exposure, previous health status and the severity of complications. There was a certain degree of cross protection against monkeypox virus among those who had previously been vaccinated against smallpox. (outlook new era)