CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

This electron microscopic image depicted monkeypox virus particles, obtained from a clinical sample associated with the 2003 prairie dog outbreak. It was a thin section image from of a human skin sample. On the left were mature, oval-shaped virus particles, and on the right were the crescents, and spherical particles of immature virions.

Monkeypox cases have increased in Mecklenburg County.

The county health department announced today that there were 12 reported cases of monkeypox, more than half of the cases confirmed in North Carolina. Every case reported so far have been among men, with most of them reporting having sex with men.

“All of our residents that have been confirmed so far are males,” said Dr. Raynard Washington, Mecklenburg County’s health director.  “Most are between the ages of 25 and 44. And two-thirds of them are African Americans. Most of the males also report sexual contact with other males and our communicable disease team has been successful at tracing these confirmed cases.”

As of June 20, there were 13 reported cases of monkeypox in North Carolina according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cases are expected to increase in Mecklenburg as the virus continues to spread quickly across the United States.

All vaccine appointments are booked, and county officials are working to have more vaccine available soon. Residents can join the waiting list of more than 500 people with about 100 more signing up every day.

Testing is available at hospitals and Novant Health and Atrium Health facilities.

The health department is working with the CDC and community organizations to expand vaccines and testing in the county.

“We’re educating the community, we’re educating our physicians on how this outbreak looks a bit different than what we classically think of monkeypox,” said Dr. Katie Passaretti, vice president and enterprise chief epidemiologist at Atrium Health. “Getting that word out making sure people are asking questions when they present their doctor with an unusual rash continues to be super important.”

The most common sign of monkeypox are rashes that can appear anywhere on the skin such as the face, arms, hands, and even the genitals. Although it is not a sexually transmitted disease, monkeypox can be transmitted by having sex with an infected person.

Washington encouraged people to engage in safe sex practices to lower their risk. If a person does test positive for the illness, they should isolate themselves, cover the rash, and contact their health care provider immediately.

People who are infected should also respond to calls from the health department so contact tracers can help identify and notify the people they were in close contact with.

“When you do talk to our communicable disease nurses, please provide as much detail as possible about your potential exposures in the community,” Washington said. “We really [have] to do this process in order to be able to identify individuals who are potentially exposed in the community and notify them and get them vaccinated as quickly as possible.”

People can lower their risk of exposure by washing their hands often and avoiding skin-to-skin contact with people who have rashes that look like monkeypox, according to the CDC.

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