Dallas County Health and Human Services (DCHHS) announced Friday the first case of Monkeypox in a resident of Dallas County. It’s believed to be the first-ever case of a rare disease in Texas.
According to DCHHS, the individual is a City of Dallas resident who traveled from Nigeria to Dallas, arriving at Love Field airport on July 9, 2021. The person is hospitalized in Dallas and is in stable condition, DCHHS said in a statement.
CDC is working with the airline and state and local health officials to contact airline passengers and others who may have been in contact with the patient during the flights. The individual is isolated at the hospital to prevent the spread of the virus, DCHHS said.
“While rare, this case is not a reason for alarm and we do not expect any threat to the general public. Dallas County Health and Human Services is working closely with local providers, as well as our state and federal partners,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a statement from Dallas County’s health department.
The CDC provides information about the disease: what is Monkeypox and its Symptoms.
What is Monkeypox?
Monkeypox was first discovered in 1958 when two outbreaks of a pox-like disease occurred in colonies of monkeys kept for research, hence the name ‘monkeypox.’ The first human case of monkeypox was recorded in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo during a period of intensified effort to eliminate smallpox. Since then monkeypox has been reported in humans in other central and western African countries.
Signs and Symptoms
In humans, the symptoms of monkeypox are similar to but milder than the symptoms of smallpox. Monkeypox begins with fever, headache, muscle aches, and exhaustion. The main difference between symptoms of smallpox and monkeypox is that monkeypox causes lymph nodes to swell (lymphadenopathy) while smallpox does not. The incubation period (time from infection to symptoms) for monkeypox is usually 7−14 days but can range from 5−21 days.
The illness begins with:
- Fever
- Headache
- Muscle aches
- Backache
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Chills
- Exhaustion
Within 1 to 3 days (sometimes longer) after the appearance of fever, the patient develops a rash, often beginning on the face then spreading to other parts of the body.
Lesions progress through the following stages before falling off:
- Macules
- Papules
- Vesicles
- Pustules
- Scabs
The illness typically lasts for 2−4 weeks. In Africa, monkeypox has been shown to cause death in as many as 1 in 10 persons who contract the disease.
Source: CDC
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