
Chicago, Philadelphia and Los Angeles County all announced their first monkeypox cases Thursday amid growing concerns about the outbreak in the United States.
All three locations’ public health departments are currently awaiting final confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for the presumed cases.
“The patient is an adult resident who recently traveled and had a known close contact to a case. Although the patient is symptomatic, they are doing well and not hospitalized. They are isolated from others,” the Los Angeles County announcement said, assuring that the general public’s risk of monkeypox remains low.
“The Chicago Department of Public Health and Illinois Department of Public Health, announced today a single presumptive monkeypox case in an adult male Chicago resident with recent travel history to Europe,” wrote the Chicago agency in its announcement.
“The threat to Philadelphians from monkeypox is extremely low,” said Health Department Acute Communicable Disease Program Manager Dana Perella, with the health department adding that any details about the patient’s case will remain anonymous to protect the privacy of the patient.
“Monkeypox is much less contagious than COVID-19 and is containable particularly when prompt care is sought for symptoms,” Perella added. “Vaccine to prevent or lessen the severity of illness is available through the CDC for high-risk contacts of persons infected with monkeypox, as is antiviral treatment for patients with monkeypox. I believe that residents and visitors should feel safe to do all the fun things Philadelphia has to offer, with the proper precautions.”
Proof Monkeypox is Just a Side Effect From The Covid Poison Shot:
As Quebec monkeypox cases rise to 71, Tam warns of need for better global defences
Canada’s chief public health officer says the world must erect better defences against transmissible diseases as climate change and other factors raise the risk of more in the years to come.
OTTAWA — Canada’s chief public health officer says the world must erect better defences against transmissible diseases as climate change and other factors raise the risk we will see more emerging infectious diseases in the years to come.
Dr. Theresa Tam’s comments come as Canada has now confirmed 77 cases of monkeypox, with 71 in Quebec, five in Ontario and one in Alberta.
Globally, there are 550 confirmed cases in 30 non-endemic countries where the virus has not usually been found.
Tam warns that while we know a lot about how the monkeypox virus behaves in countries where it is endemic, we know little about how it may behave in populations that are mostly unvaccinated against it and have no natural levels of immunity.
Monkeypox is caused by a virus and spreads when humans come into direct contact with the virus, often through infectious sores, scabs, bodily fluids or respiratory secretions during prolonged, intimate contact.
Tam says thus far the cases in Canada have not spread beyond a specific community where the first cases were identified, but that is always a risk and public awareness is key to identifying and tracing cases as quickly as possible.