CDC now monitoring ‘over 200 individuals in 27 states’ for monkeypox

Michael Scheidt, Nexstar Media Wire

Updated: Jul 23, 2021 / 07:36 AM CDT

BONDUA, LIBERIA – UNDATED: In this 1971 Center For Disease Control handout photo, monkeypox-like lesions are shown on the arm and leg of a female child in Bondua, Liberia. (Photo Courtesy of the CDC/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (WVLA) — More than a week after a Texas man was confirmed to have monkeypox after traveling overseas, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is monitoring dozens of people who may have come in contact with him.

Since the original monkeypox diagnosis in Texas, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is monitoring “over 200 individuals in 27 states and a few other countries.”

The patient flew into Atlanta, Georgia on July 9 from Lagos, Nigeria, and then went on to Dallas. He was admitted to a hospital in Dallas. The individuals being observed either know they were around the monkeypox patient or were on the same flights as the man.

None of the individuals being monitored is considered high risk and so far no additional cases have been found. The CDC stresses that the risk to everyone else is low.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these are the signs and symptoms to look out for:

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.

If you have any questions about how to keep from being infected with the monkeypox virus, visit CDC Prevention.

At the moment, there is no safe treatment for anyone who has contracted monkeypox.

It has been over 50 years since the first case of monkeypox was diagnosed, according to the CDC.