Second Case Of Monkeypox Suspected In California: Health Officials

SACRAMENTO, CA — A second suspected case of monkeypox has been found in California, and officials said the person was in close contact with the state's first patient.

As Sacramento Patch previously reported, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed a patient became infected with Monkeypox in Sacramento County, making it the first in California. The person recently traveled to Europe, which has seen several cases of the disease.

An investigation into close contacts of the man uncovered a second case, the Sacramento County Public Health department said in a news release Friday. Both patients are isolating in their homes and are not in contact with others. The risk to the general public remains very low, the health department said.

A sample of the second monkeypox infection will be sent to the CDC for confirmation testing.

“This case is a close contact of the initial patient,” Dr. Olivia Kasirye, the county's public health officer, said in a statement. “The public health investigation is on-going and additional contact tracing will be conducted.”

Monkeypox symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion. Within up to three days (though sometimes longer) after a fever, the patient develops a rash that often begins on the face and spreads to other parts of the body. A monkeypox infection ranges from five to 21 days from infection to symptoms, and the illness typically lasts two to four weeks, the health department said.

Recent monkeypox cases in the United States have been linked to travel in Europe, which has seen outbreaks.

Other states with monkeypox cases include Massachusetts, Florida, New York, Utah, Colorado and Washington state.

The World Health Organization said nearly 200 cases of monkeypox have been reported in more than 20 countries not usually known to have outbreaks, The Associated Press reported. WHO described the epidemic as "containable," and proposed creating a stockpile to equitably share the limited vaccines and drugs available worldwide.

The U.N. health agency said many questions remain unanswered about what triggered the outbreak outside Africa. There is no evidence that any genetic changes in the virus are responsible.

"The first sequencing of the virus shows that the strain is not different from the strains we can find in endemic countries and (this outbreak) is probably due more to a change in human behaviour," said Dr. Sylvie Briand, the organization's director of pandemic and epidemic diseases.

Federal and state health officials are urging health care providers in the U.S. to be on the lookout for patients who have rash illnesses consistent with monkeypox, especially if they have traveled to an area where monkeypox has been reported, or have had close contact with a person suspected of having monkeypox.

The CDC has warned of a potential increased risk of exposure for those who self-identify as men who have sex with men.

Monkeypox, usually contained to central and west Africa, including in Nigeria, where about 450 cases have been reported since 2017. It's a rare, potentially serious viral illness.

There is no proven, safe treatment specifically for monkeypox, though limited evidence available indicates smallpox treatments may be useful. Most patients recover with no treatment.

Monkeypox isn't easily spread; it usually occurs through bites or scratches from rodents and small mammals, preparing wild game, or coming into contact with an infected animal. People can also be infected through contact with infected people, their clothing or bedsheets.

It enters the body the way infections normally do, through breaks in the skin — even microscopic cuts — and through the eyes, nose or mouth, according to the CDC.

Animals can spread it to humans in multiple ways, including through bites and scratches, but also as their meat is being prepared for human consumption. Person-to-person transmission occurs "primarily through large respiratory droplets" that generally can't travel far, according to the CDC.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.