Sentiment Analysis of Monkeypox Tweets in Latin America

Even during the Covid-19 pandemic, a new outbreak of Monkeypox was confirmed in the United Kingdom, and from there it has spread throughout the world. Among the most affected countries are those located in Latin America, one of the most vulnerable regions due to the lack of adequate hospital infrastructure, the shortcomings or deficiencies of health care systems, or populations with a high prevalence of chronic diseases. Social media platforms, such as Twitter, have become valuable sources of real-time information and public sentiment during disease outbreaks. This study presents an analysis of sentiment expressed in tweets related to Monkeypox in Latin America, aiming to understand public perceptions and emotional responses. We collected a dataset of tweets containing keywords associated with Monkeypox, originating from Latin American countries, over a specific time frame (from May 31, 2022, to October 31, 2022). Natural language processing techniques were employed to preprocess and analyze the textual content. Sentiment analysis tools were applied to classify tweets into positive or negative sentiments. Our findings reveal valuable insights into the sentiment dynamics surrounding Monkeypox in Latin America. We observed fluctuations in sentiment over time, closely aligned with the progression of the disease and related events.