There are now six cases of monkeypox in Alabama, one week after the first two cases were announced by state health officials, according to new data from the CDC.
A CDC update Thursday on the national outbreak of monkeypox, a rare disease with flu-like symptoms usually limited to central Africa, showed six cases in Alabama.
The agency did not give the locations within Alabama of the four new cases.
The Alabama Department of Public Health said it does not release specific information on monkeypox cases.
Ryan Easterling, an ADPH spokesman, said the agency revealed the first two cases of monkeypox in Alabama were reported last week in Jefferson and Mobile counties due to those counties being “larger metropolitan areas.”
He noted that there have been no reported deaths or hospitalizations due to the Alabama monkeypox cases.
Monkeypox symptoms are similar to smallpox and include fever, headache, muscle and backaches, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion, and, most notably, a rash that looks like pimples or blisters. The blisters typically appear on the face, inside the mouth and on other parts of the body like hands, feet, chest, genitals or anus.
The illness typically lasts two to four weeks.
Here are some important facts to know:
- Monkeypox is not as contagious as COVID, with no deaths and no cases in healthcare workers or children.
- The first known Alabamian with the virus tested positive Thursday afternoon, and had traveled to three different states in the previous three weeks.
- Victims usually quarantine about three weeks, and completely heal in about three to four weeks.
- Monkeypox, which is not commonly found in the U.S., causes flu-like symptoms that can include fever, chills, headaches and muscle aches.
- The virus also causes a rash that looks like pimples or blisters that appear on the hands, face, mouth, genitals or chest, according to the CDC. Those with the disease cannot transmit it without symptoms.
- Anyone with a new or unexplained rash or symptoms should avoid intimate contact with anyone until they are checked out by a healthcare provider or at the health department. The rash should be covered by clothes.
- To protect against the disease, avoid contact with anyone who may have been infected or objects that have been touched by them. Also avoid skin-to-skin and intimate contact with anyone displaying a rash that looks like monkeypox, and minimize sexual contact with multiple or anonymous partners.
- People who think they may have been exposed to monkeypox are encouraged to speak to their healthcare provider. The Alabama Department of Public Health and CDC also have websites with more information about the virus.
