Festival season could trigger another surge of mpox cases, health officials warn.
A recent outbreak of 21 mpox cases in Chicago prompted experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to issue a nationwide health alert. They are concerned that mpox cases could rise during the summer, especially as transgender people and gay and bisexual men (who are most at risk) travel to Pride festivals and other major LGBTQ+ events.
But unlike summer ‘22, when vaccines, testing and treatment was extremely difficult to obtain, Los Angeles County health officials say there is ample supply. The two-dose vaccine is still free. The CDC estimated in a study that a single dose of the vaccine is 75% effective at preventing mpox, while two doses were about 86% effective.
Here’s how you can stay safe:
What is mpox?
Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is caused by a virus in the same family as smallpox, though it’s not as transmissible or fatal. Typically, patients have a fever, muscle aches, and then a rash on their face, mouth, hands, and possibly genitals and rectum that can last for several weeks. The rash can be very painful.
“It starts out generally as like a flat lesion, and then over the course of a few days it will develop into more of a small bump, then a pustule, and then more like a crater with a crust over it,” said Sonali Kulkarni, Medical Director of HIV and STD programs at Public Health.
“Essentially any kind of abnormal skin rash could be consistent with mpox. Sometimes if folks have it in their anal area they may not be able to see it, but it’s a painful lesion. Usually people do seek care if they have lesions there because…
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