Health leaders keeping an eye out on monkeypox with presumptive case in South Florida

FILE - This 2003 electron microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows mature, oval-shaped monkeypox virions, left, and spherical immature virions, right, obtained from a sample of human skin associated with the 2003 prairie dog outbreak. Israeli authorities said late Saturday, May 21, 2022, they have detected the country's first case of monkeypox in a man who returned from abroad and were looking into other suspected cases. (Cynthia S. Goldsmith, Russell Regner/CDC via AP) (Uncredited, CDC)

The Florida Department of Health in Orange County said on Sunday that at last check, there are no reported cases of monkeypox in Orange County.

This coming as the CDC says the risk to the generic public for now is low, but they’re warning people to see a doctor if they have characteristic rashes after traveling to a country with a recently confirmed case or possible exposure to someone who has.

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“We should all be paying attention,” said Dr. Ashish Kumar Jha, White House coronavirus response coordinator, to CNN. “But I feel like this is a virus we understand.”

As health leaders closely monitor what they’re calling for now a low risk of exposure, the Florida Department of Health and the CDC announcing on Sunday they’re investigating what they’re calling a presumptive case of monkeypox in Broward County, related to international travel, though it’s not clear where the person traveled from.

That person is in isolation, and they’re notifying others who may have been exposed.

“We have vaccines against it, we have treatments against it and it’s spread very differently than SARS-Covid-2,” Jha said. “It’s not as contagious as COVID. So I am confident we’re going to be able to keep our arms around it.”

The CDC put out this health advisory Friday, warning people about other recent low-risk cases worldwide, including parts of Europe and Canada.

And at least one case is in Massachusetts.

They said Monkeypox is an infection transmitted between animals and humans and that most human cases have been found in Central and West Africa.

“This is primarily spread through close contact, generally by touching an infected lesion,” Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti said to CNN.

The CDC is warning people to also look out for symptoms like a fever, headache, muscle and backaches, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion.

They say a rash may appear between 1 to 3 days and sickness can last up to four weeks.


About the Author:

Jerry Askin is an Atlanta native who came to News 6 in March 2018 with an extensive background in breaking news.