(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Public Health, Wednesday, confirmed the first positive case of MonkeyPox in Pottawattamie County. Pottawattamie County Public Health officials say they are working closely with the IDPH to conduct contact tracing. PCPH is also communicating with local health partners to identify anyone who may be at risk due to close contact with the patient while infectious. People who have been confirmed to have had direct close contact are instructed to watch for symptoms of illness, and are offered a vaccine series. The series is used to prevent symptoms from developing or developing severe illness.

According to the press release, the virus known as monkeypox is most commonly spread through skin contact or by way of shared items that have been contaminated by bodily fluids, but it can also make its way from person to person through “prolonged face-to-face contact” or other means of intimate contact. “Although monkeypox is not generally considered a sexually transmitted infection, it can be transmitted during intimate contact and sex by skin-to-skin and other intimate contact, regardless of gender or sexual orientation,” the release states.

The state and local health departments advise anyone who has had contact with a confirmed or suspected case — or has traveled to a country where monkeypox cases have been reported — to be mindful of symptoms, particularly rashes or lesions.

Symptoms of monkeypox can include:

• Fever
• Headache
• Muscle aches and backache
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Chills
• Exhaustion
• A rash that can look 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.

The rash goes through different stages before healing completely. The illness typically lasts 2-4 weeks. Sometimes, people get a rash first, followed by other symptoms. Others only experience a rash.

How it Spreads

The virus can spread from person-to-person through:

• direct contact with the infectious rash, scabs, or body fluids
• respiratory secretions during prolonged, face-to-face contact, or during intimate physical contact, such as kissing, cuddling, or sex

Health care providers

• A high index of suspicion for monkeypox is warranted when evaluating people with the characteristic rash, particularly for the following groups:
  • men who report sexual contact with other men and who present with lesions in the genital/perianal area,
  • people reporting a significant travel history in the month before illness onset or
  • people reporting contact with people who have a similar rash or have received a diagnosis of suspected or confirmed monkeypox.