Monkeypox and gay men: Here’s what we know
27.06.2022 - 23:49
/ qvoicenews.com
Monkeypox virus has been in the news as the number of cases in the Los Angeles area and across the country is on the rise, according to data from the California Health Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Most cases so far, including the 22 in Los Angeles County, have primarily occurred in sexual contact among gay and bisexual men.
Here’s what we know.
What is monkeypox?
Monkeypox is a viral infection from a pox virus that was first discovered in monkeys in 1958. It is believed that the virus naturally lives and reproduces in rodents in central and western Africa. The first human case of monkeypox was identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970. The last major outbreak in the United States was in 2003 from Gambian giant rats imported by an exotic pet dealer.
“There have been sporadic exposures to cases over the years,” said Dr. Erica Pan, state epidemiologist with the California Health Department. “This year is the first time there have been so many cases in countries that don’t normally have monkeypox.”
Monkeypox infections in the U.S. are usually associated with travel to west or central Africa or contact with imported infected animals.
How is monkeypox spread?
“In this current outbreak, the highest risk of transmission is very close, skin-to-skin contact, including kissing and sex, with the lesions someone has on their skin,” Pan said. “But monkey pox is not a sexually transmitted disease.”
“There is some potential risk with prolonged, intimate face-to-face contact with someone. But monkeypox is very different from COVID, which is a respiratory disease and highly infectious,” Pan said
“We have seen rare cases where the virus can be transmitted if someone shares clothing, and