Mayor Bowser confirms infant contracted monkeypox while visiting D.C.
Bowser said health care workers have tracked the child’s contacts, and that she didn't believe hospitalization was required.
One of the two pediatric cases of monkeypox confirmed in America was an infant who is not a U.S. resident diagnosed with the virus while visiting the District of Columbia.
Mayor Muriel Bowser made the announcement Monday at a press conference, WTOP reported. She noted that health care workers have tracked the child’s contacts, and said she did not believe the child required hospitalization.
“The family was traveling and traveled to D.C., and I believe that they were going to stay in D.C. during the recuperation time,” Bowser said. ” … Immediately upon this diagnosis, there was a complete contact tracing done.”
The second pediatric case of monkeypox was a toddler diagnosed in California. Both cases have come after the World Health Organization officially declared monkeypox a global public health emergency.
In Washington D.C., there have been 110 confirmed cases of the virus, with 71 in Maryland and 40 in neighboring Virginia, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. The District of Columbia has created a preregistration portal for residents who want to receive the monkeypox vaccine.
Monkeypox symptoms include headache, backache, muscle aches, fever, chills, swollen lymph nodes or exhaustion, according to DC Health. The virus causes a rash that starts on the face and often spreads to other parts of the body. Symptoms usually appear seven to 14 days after exposure but can linger for as long as five to 21 days.
“Let me just use this as an opportunity to remind everybody to contact their physician if they are displaying any symptoms or think they may have some skin condition that could be monkeypox, they should isolate, contact their doctor, and get treatment,” Bowser said.
Monkeypox is known to spread by close personal contact with an infected person (or animal) or via contact with the rash sores or bodily fluids of someone who is infected.
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