Dr. Howard Smith Oncall

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/VQj4zPuGqdY   We’ve talked about a twindemic this spring of both CoVid and Influenza, but now we have monkeypox threatening to make it a tridemic.  So what should you know about monkeypox?   Monkeypox is an orthopoxvirus, a cousin of the smallpox virus, that was first identified in 1958 in a colony of African monkeys.  The first human case was noted in 1970, again in Africa, and the majority of infections occur in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  The virus is mostly carried by rodents such as mice, rats, and squirrels.   Monkeypox does not occur naturally in the US, and all cases here stem from International travelers bringing in the virus.  As of June 1st, monkeypox cases have been identified in 10 states and in more than 23 countries.   Monkeypox begins with typical symptoms of viral infections including fever, headache, muscle aches, and fatigue after a 5 to 21 day incubation period.  One to three days after symptom onset, a rash appears followed by discrete lesions that be