VIRGINIA – Monkeypox is a virus experts are watching closely, as it was declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization last week.
UVA experts said they’re watching the spread of the latest strain.
An outbreak is happening in Africa, where around 1 in 30 people who are infected with the virus are dying.
“We think this is a sort of a tip of the iceberg sort of phenomenon where people may not be presenting with the disease, so we don’t really know the full severity of illness,” UVA Health Pulmonary and Critical Care Specialist Dr. Kyle Enfield said. “We know that there are people that probably have the diseases that aren’t presenting for treatment or evaluation.”
Doctors said the virus usually starts with flu-like symptoms, and the rash shows up two days later.
No cases have been reported in the U.S. as of yet.