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A man traveling to Canada has been diagnosed with the rare and potentially deadly disease, monkeypox virus, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reported Wednesday.
This is the first report of monkeypox in the United States this year. Authorities Texas and Maryland registered one case each last year. But the new case follows a series of unusual clusters that are starting to alarm public health officials in other countries.
In the past few weeks, the UK has identified nine cases of monkeypox. Only one patient had recently traveled – to Nigeria, where one strain of the monkeypox virus is common – the remaining British patients who did not may have contracted the infection through community transmission. Three patients shared a household.
There are 23 suspected cases in Spain. Portugal has confirmed five cases and is investigating 15 more. Canadian health officials are investigating at least 15 possible cases in Montreal, according to an infectious disease expert familiar with the effort but not authorized to discuss the issue publicly.
D., director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security at the Bloomberg School of Public Health. “It’s a surprise that it’s in multiple unrelated clusters in England, plus Spain plus Portugal,” said Tom Inglesby.
Monkeypox is a more benign version of the smallpox virus and can be treated with an antiviral drug developed for smallpox. But unlike measles, Covid or the flu, monkeypox does not typically cause major outbreaks.
Dr. Inglesby said clinicians need to be aware of the symptoms so they can quickly detect new cases.
Monkeypox infection starts with fever and body aches. Its most prominent feature is a characteristic rash that starts with solid red marks, then becomes raised and filled with pus.
Dr. Pustules appear on the face, chest, and palms, Inglesby said, adding that “it’s a bit unusual.”
The virus is endemic in parts of Central and West Africa and can be spread through bites or scratches from rodents and small mammals. According to the World Health Organization, contact with live and dead animals through hunting and consumption of wild game or bush meat are known risk factors.
The United States has seen an outbreak of monkeypox Dozens of cases in 2003. It was all believed to result from exposure to infected prairie dogs and other pets.
The virus does not spread between people but can be spread through bodily fluids, contaminated objects, or respiratory droplets expelled by an infected person. Cases reported in the UK and Canada were mostly among men who had sex with men.
UK Health Security Agency chief medical adviser Dr. “These recent cases, along with case reports in countries across Europe, confirm our initial concerns that monkeypox may be spreading in our communities,” said Susan Hopkins. in a statement Tuesday. “This is rare and unusual.”
Experts said that men in these communities should watch out for rashes or lesions anywhere on their body, especially the genitals.
Health officials in Massachusetts are working closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the patient’s healthcare providers to identify people who may have had contact while they were contagious, officials said in a statement.
Authorities said the person was taken to the hospital and is in good condition.
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