UPDATE: On Aug. 23, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced health officials have learned that the 2-year-old who was presumed to be positive for monkeypox did not have the virus. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined through testing that it was a false positive, she said.
The original story follows below:
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — The monkeypox virus has shown that it’s not confined to one group, with rare cases now seen in minors. According to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, a child under 2 was presumed to be positive for monkeypox after testing for the virus on Tuesday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will take about a week to confirm the presumed positive case.
Monkeypox case numbers are at 354 in Harris County, with the city of Houston at 305, per the CDC’s latest report on Tuesday.
During a conference, Hidalgo stated they’re still trying to figure out how the virus was contracted as the parents said the child was not in a day care or school setting. Vaccines were offered to anyone who may have been in direct contact, but no one has tested positive.
The child’s parents shared that the 2-year-old is asymptomatic, besides having a rash. A full recovery is expected for the child.
Hidalgo made it a point to reassure parents as their kids return to school that it is a rarity for children to catch monkeypox.
Houston’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Persse said there’s information about the monkeypox we don’t know yet, but will be sure to learn along the way.
Although experts say it isn’t necessarily unexpected for kids to contract the virus, it is very unlikely.
Officials explain that their main focus will remain on the most at risk, which are men who have sex with other men and who have multiple partners.
Intradermal monkeypox vaccination, an injection given under the skin, began Tuesday — per guidance from federal health officials.
Groups prioritized for vaccination are people age 18 or older who:
- Are men who have sex with men and have had multiple or anonymous sex partners within the previous 21 days
- Have a sex partner suspected of having monkeypox, such as rash or sores
- Are HIV positive or on HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)
- Have had a diagnosis of chlamydia, gonorrhea, or early syphilis within the previous three months