Monkeypox in over half of U.S. states

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday that the virus is now in 36 states. The total count of confirmed cases remains at about 700, according to the CDC. Internationally, more than 7,000 cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in at least 57 locations. The virus has spread throughout the United States before in 2003 and 2021.

What is the virus? It’s a variant of smallpox and has symptoms that include fever, headache, rashes, and exhaustion. Illness typically lasts 2 to 4 weeks. The virus spreads from person to person through the transmission of bodily fluids, often through sex, although individuals can still contract it from being scratched by animals. The CDC has said that men who have sex with men make up a high number of cases in this outbreak. There are two vaccines available, but it is uncertain how effective they are against the current strain of the virus.

Dig deeper: Read Juliana Chan Erikson’s report in Beginnings about the monkeypox virus.