New York City health officials said they are investigating a possible case of monkeypox one day after Massachusetts officials confirmed the first U.S. case this year
An electron microscopic image shows mature, oval-shaped monkeypox virus particles as well as crescents and spherical particles of immature virions, obtained from a clinical human skin sample in this undated image obtained by Reuters. (Cynthia S. Goldsmith, Russell Regner/CDC via AP)
Health officials in New York City are investigating a possible case of monkeypox, the city’s New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said Thursday.
The patient is being cared for at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, according to health officials. The department said preliminary tests will be sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) if they come out positive.
The city’s health department did not say whether the unidentified patient had traveled anywhere outside the United States.
The news came a day after Massachusetts health officials confirmed the first case of monkeypox in the U.S. this year. The individual had recently traveled to Canada and officials were conducting contact tracing.
The virus is rare but potentially serious.
It causes similar symptoms to smallpox, including fever, headache, muscle aches, exhaustion, chills, and skin lesions.
At least seven cases of the virus have been reported this month in the United Kingdom, health authorities there said.
Fox News’ Paul Best contributed to this report.