Update: County officials say there are "no confirmed cases of monkeypox in Klickitat County."
If at any time there is a confirmed case of monkeypox, we will complete a full investigation as the health officials and notify those that are close contacts of the case, county officials wrote in a update on the health department's Facebook page.
Klickitat County Health Department has identified the first suspected case of monkeypox in the county.
Public Health Director Erinn Quinn told county commissioners during a July 26 board meeting that she requested a transfer of antiviral medications from King County, which is the entity holding medications for the state of Washington. Quinn did not report the demographics of the individual out of concern it could inadvertently identify them.
“We’re working on getting that taken care of,” Quinn said. She added that officials in Washington state indicated that all of the confirmed cases in the state have occurred in males, with the highest percentage occurring in the 19-49 age range.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, monkeypox is part of the same family of viruses as variola virus, which causes smallpox. Monkeypox symptoms are similar to smallpox symptoms, but milder, and monkeypox is rarely fatal. Monkeypox is not related to chickenpox.
Symptoms of monkeypox can include fever, headache, muscle aches and back aches, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion, and a rash that looks like pimples or blisters that appears on the face, inside the mouth, and on other parts of the body, like the hands, feet, chest, genitals, or anus.
According to the CDC, monkeypox can spread through direct contact with the infectious area; respiratory secretions during prolonged, face-to-face contact or during intimate physical contact, such as kissing, cuddling, or sex; and touching items that previously touched the infectious rash or bodily fluids.
Pregnant people can also spread the virus to their fetus through the placenta, according to the CDC.
Washington State Department of Health most recently reported 101 cases in the state. The Department of Health recommends separating yourself from other people and from animals, as well as refraining from physical contact, sharing bedding, towels, dishes, or utensils with others. Health officials also recommend avoiding commercial travel and having someone else take care of animals. Cases of monkeypox can last two to four weeks.
According to the Department of Health, brief interactions that do not involve physical contact are generally consider low risk for transmission. The virus is far less likely to be spread through the air, as is dominant in COVID-19, according to the Department of Health.
“While the current cases nationally and internationally mainly involve men who have sex with men, anyone who is sexually active with multiple partners or who are partners with someone who has sex with multiple partners can be at risk for being exposed to monkeypox,” according to the Department of Health.
For more information, visit the CDC website, and further guidance by Washington Department of Health is located here.
A previous version of this article wrongly ascribed demographics of all confirmed cases in the state of Washington to a suspected case in Klickitat County.
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