A child visiting D.C. has been diagnosed with monkeypox, Mayor Muriel Bowser confirmed during a news conference Monday.
It’s one of two pediatric cases in the country. Health officials said last week that one case involved a toddler in California and the other case involved an infant who is not a U.S. resident but who was tested while in D.C.
Bowser said that health workers have carefully tracked the child’s contacts, and that she doesn’t believe the child was hospitalized.
“The family was traveling and traveled to D.C., and I believe that they were going to stay in D.C. during the recuperation time,” Bowser said. ” … Immediately upon this diagnosis, there was a complete contact tracing done.”
The confirmation came about a week after health officials said D.C. is experiencing the largest monkeypox outbreak per capita in the nation. There have been 110 confirmed cases of monkeypox in D.C., 71 in Maryland and 40 in Virginia, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
The District has a preregistration portal for residents interested in receiving a monkeypox vaccine.
Monkeypox symptoms can include fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, chills, exhaustion or swollen lymph nodes, according to DC Health. Within a few days, people develop a rash that often starts on the face and could spread to other body parts.
DC Health’s guidance says symptoms appear seven to 14 days after exposure but can linger for five to 21 days.
Monkeypox can spread through contact with an infected person or animal or through contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids or sores.
“Let me just use this as an opportunity to remind everybody to contact their physician, if they are displaying any symptoms or think they may have some skin condition that could be monkeypox, they should isolate, contact their doctor and get treatment,” Bowser said.
