DAYTON, Ohio — Montgomery County has identified its first case of monkeypox.
According to a news release, the county is in contact with the Ohio Department of Health and the patient's health care provider.
Public Health will notify close contacts with some being eligible for vaccination to help prevent monekypox or decrease symptoms. Details about the patient were not released.
As of Aug. 8, there are 45 cases of mokeypox within Ohio, adding up to more than 7,000 cases in the U.S. according to the CDC.
The viral illness typically begins with flu-like symptoms, swelling of the lymph nodes and a rash. The rash may look like pimples or blisters and be contained to a particular part of the body. In recent cases across the county, these initial symptoms are less likely to appear.
The virus can spread through direct contact person-to-person by rouching the rash, scabs or bodily fluids of a person. It can also be spread through respiratory secretions through prolonged face-to-face contact. Pregnant people can spread the virus to their fetus through the placenta.
It can also spread through items, such as clothing or linens, that came into contact with the rash or body fluids. People can also contract monkeypox through infected animals by being bitten or scratched, or by eating the meat or using products from an infected animal.
The virus can be spread from the time symptoms start until the rash has fully healed and a fresh layer of skin has formed. The illness typically lasts 2-4 weeks, and in some cases a medication may be available to treat it. Those who do not have monkeypox symptoms cannot spread the virus.
Public Health's release said the risk to the public is low at this time.