The World Health Organization said on Monday it will start using a new preferred term, mpox, as a synonym for the monkeypox disease.
"Both names will be used simultaneously for one year while 'monkeypox' is phased out," the global health organisation said.
The move is said to be an effort to destigmatise the virus that gained a foothold in Europe and the United States earlier this year.
It comes in response to growing pressure from senior Biden officials in the US, who privately urged WHO leaders to change the name, according to Politico.
Around 80,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in about 100 countries since the outbreak started earlier this year.
The WHO continues to classify the disease as a public health emergency of international concern, which is its highest level of alert.
