The Florida Department of Health in Monroe County reported Wednesday, July 13, the first confirmed case of monkeypox in the Florida Keys.
The virus is spread through casual skin-to-skin contact, including sexual activity, with a monkeypox lesion or rash, said Alison Kerr of the county health department.
He added that hotel housekeepers who change sheets are also vulnerable to the virus. He recommended that these workers wear gloves and long sleeves when changing clothes.
Testing is done by feeling and testing one of the rashes or skin lesions that are symptomatic of monkeypox and can appear anywhere on the body.
A monkeypox vaccine is available, and the county health department has “very limited doses,” so officials are reserving it for vulnerable populations that include hotel housekeepers as well as men who have sex between Same-sex people account for the majority of cases in Broward and Miami Dade counties, which have reported 77 and 21 cases, respectively.
Health department officials recommend calling the department at 305-293-7500 with any questions and are distributing the following information about monkeypox:
Monkeypox-Monroe-Flyer
Monkeypox: Know the facts
Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by the monkeypox virus. contact with monkey pox rash, sores or scabs; contact with objects, fabrics (clothes, bedding, or towels) and surfaces that have been used by someone with smallpox; through respiratory droplets or oral fluids from a person with monkeypox, such as during intimate sexual activity, including oral, anal, and vaginal sex or touching the genitals or anus of a person with monkeypox; hugging, massaging or kissing and talking closely; touching fabrics and objects during sex that were used by a person with monkeypox, such as bedding, towels, and sex toys. We know that the virus can be transmitted in fluid or pus from monkeypox ulcers, and we are trying to better understand whether the virus can be transmitted. present in semen, vaginal fluids or other body fluids.
What are the symptoms?
Early flu-like symptoms of monkeypox may include: fever, headache, muscle and back pain, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion, rash or ulcers, sometimes located on the genitals or anus , but sometimes in other areas such as the hands. , feet, chest or face – sores will go through several stages before healing.
Ulcers can be inside the body, including the mouth, vagina, or anus. Some people experience a rash or sores first, followed by other symptoms, and some only experience a rash or sores. a new layer of skin has formed; this may take several weeks
If you have a new or unexplained rash, sores, or other symptoms…
● See your health care provider: If you don’t have a provider or health insurance, visit a nearby public health clinic.
● When seeing a doctor for possible monkeypox, remind the doctor that this virus circulates in the community
● Avoid sex or intimacy with someone until you have been checked
● Follow your doctor’s treatment and prevention recommendations
● Avoid sex or intimacy with anyone until all your sores have healed and a new layer of skin has formed.
Mandy Miles drops things, breaks things, and falls more than any adult should. An award-winning writer, journalist and columnist, she has been stringing words together in Key West since 1998. “Local news is crucial,” she says. “Informs and connects a community. Encourages conversation. Engages people, holds people accountable. The Keys Weekly takes its responsibility seriously. Our owners are raising families in Key West & Marathon. Our writers live in communities we cover – Key West, Marathon & the Upper Keys. We respect our readers. We question our leaders. We believe in the Florida Keys community. And we like to have a good time.” Mandy is married to a helpful, holy fishing captain, and I can’t imagine living anywhere else.
