Monkeypox Reaches Texas

The first case of monkeypox in Texas was reported yesterday in the city of Dallas.

The person is Dallas-bound and was arriving back home after a trip in Mexico. The Texas Department of State Health Services is working with Dallas County Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are working to further investigate the case, and the patient was isolated as soon as the diagnosis was given.

Public health officials have also stated that people who traveled in a similar time frame from Mexico to Dallas to look out for symptoms and to monitor themselves to look for signs of the disease.

Some of the symptoms of monkeypox include fever, headache, muscle ache, backaches, chills, exhaustion, and swollen lymph nodes.

Texas DSHS reminded the population that monkeypox until now is not considered a risk for the population and that with monitoring and medical attention most people who get the disease ride it out with no further complications.

With this first case in Texas, there are now over 35 different monkeypox cases in the United States. There has been worldwide concern over the silent spread of the disease for some months now, with countries like the United Kingdom reporting 302 cases and overall 1,000 cases around the world.

The World Health Organization has reassured people that it is unlikely that we are looking at another pandemic like the one in 2019. For once, the disease is much harder to spread than COVID-19. It can only be transmitted to humans through close contact, inhaling large respiratory droplets, or through close contact with bodily fluids.

On the other hand, it is much less dangerous than COVID-19. Most people that get it will get symptoms but rarely anything to be worried about and it leaves the body a few weeks after infection. Although there is no medicine prescribed for it, many health officials believe already existing smallpox vaccines could be effective.

Even so, it is important to implement what we have learned over the past 3 years and isolate when we are at possible risk of contamination or we are presenting symptoms. It is also encouraged that if you present any symptoms that could be related to monkeypox you receive immediate medical attention.