Disease Spread By Skin-To-Skin Contact Spikes In LA County

LOS ANGELES, CA — A recent spike in local mpox infections prompted health officials this week to urge people to get vaccinated against the virus, which can be spread by skin-to-skin contact and contaminated towels and bedding.

Over the past four weeks, 52 mpox cases were reported in Los Angeles County — more than double the 24 reported in the previous four-week period. Some 70 percent of the cases over the last six months were in unvaccinated people, the LA County Department of Public Health said Monday.

Case transmission this year is "significantly higher" than in 2023, health officials said.

Mpox, previously referred to as monkeypox, is mainly spread through contact with bodily fluids, shared bedding or respiratory droplets.

Symptoms include a rash or sores that look like pimples or blisters on the face, body and genitals, as well as fever, chills, headache, muscle aches or swollen lymph nodes.

Anyone with those symptoms should seek medical attention and get tested, health officials said.

The JYNNEOS two-dose vaccine is available for everyone, but county health authorities are urging those at higher risk of contracting the virus to get the shots. That includes:

• Men or transgender people who have sex with men or transgender people
• People of any gender or sexual orientation who have sex or intimate physical contact with others at large public events or engage in commercial or transactional sex
• People living with HIV, especially those with uncontrolled or advanced HIV disease
• Sexual partners or people in any of the above groups

Second doses of the vaccine can be given no matter how long it's been since the first dose. Vaccine boosters are not recommended at this time.

Vaccines are available at pharmacies and doctors' offices for insured people. A list of public health clinics offering free mpox vaccines is available here.

Health officials offered the following tips to reduce the risk of getting and spreading mpox:

• Do not share towels, clothing, bedding, fetish gear, sex toys or toothbrushes
• Wash hands, fetish gear, towels and bedding. Sex toys should be washed after each use or sex act.
• Ask partners if they have mpox symptoms or feel sick. People should not have sex or intimate contact if they or their partners have a new or unexplained rash or sores or feel sick, until they see a healthcare provider.
• Reduce the number of partners, especially those whose recent sexual history is unknown
• Make a habit of exchanging contact information with new partners to allow for sexual health follow-ups when needed
• Limit going to sex parties or other spaces where people are having sex or other intimate contact with multiple people
• Use condoms, which can protect the mouth, penis, anus and vagina from exposure. But condoms alone may not prevent all exposures
• Gloves may reduce exposure for digital sex acts