According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States has identified 20 confirmed or suspected cases of smallpox in 11 states as public health authorities step up testing in an effort to isolate patients and prevent the virus. spread to communities.
Dr. Jennifer McQuiston, a CDC official, said the overall risk to public health remains low right now. Most U.S. patients had a history of international travel and are likely to have caught the virus overseas, but the virus could spread nationwide, McQuiston said.
“There could be community-wide broadcasting, which is why we want to really step up our surveillance efforts,” McQuiston told reporters during a call Friday. “We want to really encourage doctors to if they see a rash and worry that it might be the monkey’s smallpox to go ahead and try it,” he said.
However, there seems to be a higher risk for gay and bisexual men right now. Of the 17 patients who provided detailed information to the CDC, 16 identified as men who had sex with men, McQuiston said. Anyone can spread monkeypox through close physical contact, and the CDC is shutting down cases in all groups in the United States. However, public health authorities are working to raise awareness of the LGBTQ community, McQuiston said.
“Our priority is to help everyone make informed decisions to protect their health and the health of their science-led community,” he said.
No monkeypox deaths have been reported during the current outbreak in the United States or Europe, McQuiston said. All patients are recovering or have already recovered, he said. The West African monkey pox strain is behind the current outbreak, which is less severe than the other strain known as the Congo Basin, according to the CDC.
According to the CDC, fourteen of the 17 patients who provided detailed information had a history of international travel to 11 different countries during the 21 days prior to the onset of symptoms. The other three patients had contact with known cases or do not know how they caught the virus, McQuiston said.
Current outbreaks of monkeypox are unusual because they occur in countries in North America and Europe where the virus is not normally found. Monkeypox infections often occur in remote areas of West and Central Africa, where the virus often spreads from rodents to humans.
The World Health Organization has identified more than 550 monkeypox infections in 30 countries, with most cases reported in European nations. The sudden outbreak of smallpox cases in several countries indicates that the virus has spread undetected for a long time outside of West and Central Africa, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom said on Wednesday. Ghebreyesus, during a press conference in Geneva.
Some cases of smallpox in monkeys in the United States may have gone unnoticed, McQuiston said, but the CDC does not believe the virus has spread widely in the country.
The CDC has told people with confirmed or suspected smallpox infections to isolate themselves at home until local or state health departments say otherwise. People with confirmed infections should remain isolated until the skin lesions that characterize the disease have completely resolved, the scabs have fallen off and a new layer of skin has formed.
Monkeypox usually starts with flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache, muscle aches, chills, exhaustion, and swollen lymph nodes. Injuries to the body are then formed and the virus spreads mainly through skin-to-skin contact with these lesions. In eight cases in the US, the rash first developed in the genitals or in the area around the anus. Smallpox can spread through the respiratory tract if a person has a sore throat or mouth, but it is not easily transmitted in this way.
“The rash caused by the monkeypox virus can spread widely through the body or occur in sensitive areas such as the genitals. It can be very painful and some patients have reported that they need prescription pain medication to control this pain. McQuiston said.
People exposed to monkeypox should control their symptoms for 21 days, according to the CDC. They should check their temperature twice a day and monitor for chills, swollen lymph nodes and new rashes. If a fever or rash occurs, the person should be isolated and contact the local health department immediately.
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