South Carolina gets first monkeypox cases. Here’s what you need to know

Bristow Marchant
Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/TNS

The national monkeypox outbreak has hit South Carolina.

Two cases of the disease have been detected in patients in the Midlands and in the Lowcountry, the S.C. Department of Health and Enviornmental Control said on Friday

“We understand residents have concerns about how this virus might impact our state,” said Dr. Linda Bell, the state epidemiologist. “We expected infections to eventually occur in South Carolina as part of the larger international outbreak, which is why DHEC has been planning a response for weeks. That said, monkeypox doesn’t spread easily and we believe the risk to the general population remains low at this time.”

Fortunately, monkeypox is not as novel as the COVID-19 virus that swept the world two years ago, leading to a near complete shutdown of schools, businesses and any activity that required multiple people to come together in one place.

Vaccines for monkeypox already exist, and federal officials recently began making monkeypox vaccines widely available in the face of rising cases in the country. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has made 56,000 doses of the vaccine available immediately, with a goal of having 1.6 million available by the end of the year, the New York Times reports. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has opened a dedicated Emergency Operations Center for monkeypox.

Midlands and Lowcountry regional epidemiology staffs are completing contact investigations and offering post-exposure vaccination to people exposed to the individuals who are infected. Those people also will be monitored to determine if they develop an infection. The CDC has been notified, and DHEC continues to follow CDC guidance in the monkeypox response.

Monkeypox is similar to the virus that causes smallpox, but is less severe and rarely fatal, according to the CDC. Symptoms of monkeypox primarily present as a rash that looks like pimples or blisters, along with fever, muscle aches, chills, exhaustion and swollen lymph nodes. Symptoms can last for two to four weeks.

DHEC warns that many cases in the current outbreak do not have the typical onset and the rash may only appear on part of the body. It is not easily spread and DHEC assesses the risk to the general population as low. But a person can be infected by prolonged close contact to someone with monkeypox, or through coming into contact with contaminated material like clothes or bed linen.

The disease is endemic to West Africa, but had not spread outside that region until a cluster of cases were reported in the United Kingdom in May, and countries around the world soon reported similar outbreaks shortly thereafter. The first case was reported in the United States on May 18, and more than 200 cases have been reported in 27 states as of June 24.

How does monkeypox spread?

Transmission of monkeypox virus happens when a person comes into contact with the virus from an animal, human or materials contaminated with the virus, the CDC says.

“In the current monkeypox outbreak, those with disease generally describe close, sustained physical contact with other people who are infected with the virus,” according to the CDC.

Prior studies, the CDC said, show that spread of monkeypox virus by respiratory secretions appears uncommon.

According to the CDC, the virus can enter the body through:

  • Broken skin

  • Respiratory droplets

  • Mucous membranes, like the eyes, nose and mouth

  • A bite or scratch from an infected animal

  • Contact with bodily fluids

  • Contaminated clothing or linens

  • Respiratory secretions during prolonged, face-to-face contact, or during intimate physical contact, such as kissing, cuddling, or sex

  • Touching items (such as clothing or linens) that previously touched the infectious rash or body fluids

  • Pregnant people can spread the virus to their fetus through the placenta.

Symptoms of monkeypox include unexplained rashes, headache, fever, muscle and body aches and swollen lymph nodes, according to the World Health Organization.

How to protect against monkeypox

Experts say masks are effective in preventing monkeypox infections.

Emily Landon, the executive director for infection prevention and control at the University of Chicago, said COVID-19 safety practices “like masks and regular hand washing will be incredibly important tools to help protect us against monkeypox.”

Wearing masks helped prevent transmission on a flight containing someone who was infected with monkeypox from contracting the virus, Andrea McCollum, who leads the poxvirus epidemiology unit at the CDC’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, told Georgia Public Broadcasting.

There have been some cases where monkeypox was transmitted from surfaces contaminated with respiratory droplets or fluid from lesions, which is why people should continue to wear masks, said Landon.

The Charlotte Observer contributed to this story.

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