Monkeypox in Garden State? [New Jersey]

1010 WINS ^ | Jun 10, 2003 | AP

[LurkedLongEnough]

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- New Jersey health officials were awaiting test results Tuesday to determine if a child from the state is infected with monkeypox.

The 11-year-old boy came into contact with a pair of prairie dogs while visiting a family friend in a Midwestern state where the infection has spread, state officials said.

Results on blood and lesion samples from the boy sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are expected in several days.

Nationally, health officials were working to contain the spread of the monkeypox virus, which is related to smallpox and apparently has never before found in the Western Hemisphere. At least 38 cases of monkeypox are suspected or have been confirmed in three Midwestern states.

The disease in humans is not usually fatal but causes rashes, fevers, chills and sores.

The boy, who was only identified as being from the northern part of New Jersey, became ill with a high fever on May 29 while still out of state. A physician gave him antibiotics and his condition improved.

The fever returned when the boy was on his way back to New Jersey last week. He also became lethargic, lost his appetite and developed blisters on his head, arms and trunk, according to state Health Commissioner Dr. Clifton Lacy.

The child's mother thought the boy might have monkeypox after seeing news reports about the virus. She took him to the doctor who prescribed antiviral medication and ordered the boy to be isolated at home.

The boy's mother and two other family members have not developed symptoms but are being monitored. The CDC said the child should be kept isolated in a separate room.

The state told the physician to sanitize his waiting area and examination room. The doctor and a nurse who came into contact with the boy will also be monitored for symptoms for three weeks.

"While in New Jersey, the child has had limited contact with people outside his family and no other suspected infected individuals have been reported," Lacy said.

Monkeypox occurs mostly in rain forests in the central and western parts of Africa. The prairie dogs in the Midwest may have been infected by an African rat from a pet distributor in Chicago, health officials said.

"This outbreak illustrates the potential health risks posed by owning and handling exotic animals," said Dr. Eddy Bresnitz, the state epidemiologist.

[Calpernia]

Good job! Was just about to post this!

I just got back from my clients officer. While I was configuring his computer systems he told me he had TWO patients that may have monkeypox. Yet this articles is about someone that is NOT his patient!

Coleus, NJ Ping?

[Calpernia]

Wow, bugged eyed from programming, :P Sorry

clients officer = client's office

The other errors can be figured out.

[dc-zoo]

So there may be three cases of monkeypox in NJ if your client is being straight with you.

[Coleus]

West Nile Virus, SARS and Now Monkey Pox!!! What Next??

[Calpernia]

It was the doctor who told me. His office his my client. No names, just two other patients.

So no confidentiality breech.

[Chilijr]

"West Nile Virus, SARS and Now Monkey Pox!!! What Next??"

HILLARY........ The incurable disease!!!

[dc-zoo]

Monkeypox may be spreading faster than is being reported after hearing what your doctor/client revealed.

[Coleus]

Ha, Lol, that's a good one , and you're right...!!!

For those who don't know, the hildebeest is coming to NJ in a month.

Coming Soon to Bookends
http://www.book-ends.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp
Hillary Rodham Clinton Meet Hillary Rodham Clinton as she signs; "Living History" on July 11th, at 3:00 PM. 232 E. Ridgewood Ave. Tel: 201 445-0726

[backhoe]

-Strange new disease outbreaks--

[aristeides]

Monkeypox is viral. So why would antibiotics have improved the boy's condition? Placebo effect?

[aristeides]

Monkeypox cases 'will go up' .

[aristeides]

Safety Net Doesn't Stop Monkeypox: May have slipped through regulatory maze

[Snowy]

Does anyone know that if you get Monkey Pox (usually non-fatal) and survive, are you then immune to smallpox?

[firewalk]

West Nile Virus, SARS and Now Monkey Pox!!! What Next??

You have to ask? lol

good morning

[LurkedLongEnough]

CDC Website: "...Smallpox vaccine has been reported to reduce the risk of monkeypox among previously vaccinated persons in Africa. The potential role of smallpox vaccine in persons who have been exposed to monkeypox is being assessed. Antiviral drugs, such as cidofovir, are being evaluated for the treatment of monkeypox."

[LurkedLongEnough]

What Next??

Tom Daschle's book about overwhelming sadness?

[vetvetdoug]

There are secondary bacterial infections in the lungs and skin when one is infected with MKX. Those pustules or eruptions are throughout the body and they are optimum sites for bacterial infections.

[firewalk]

(-:

[Petronski]

Monkeypox is viral. So why would antibiotics have improved the boy's condition? Placebo effect?

Here's a thought: if he was so weakened by monkeypox that he suffered further infections that exploited his weakness, then knocking down those other problems with antibiotics might leave his immune system free to fight the pox more aggressively.

[Betty Jo]

Like I said earlier,all Congress has to do is immediately pass legislation banning the importation of ALL foreign animals.

Federal prison for violators.

Just like Congress and the Pres have neglected to stop illegal humans from entering America to become murderers,they will probably not protect us from animals coming here and killing us.

And that is just one reason why I despise them all.

[blam]

If we haven't had any human to human transmission, a lot of people handled those prairie dogs. Seems like too many?

[LurkedLongEnough]

Does. Here's something else (co-incidental?):
TULAREMIA IN PRAIRIE DOGS IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Emergency report
Information received on 8 August 2002 from Dr Peter Fernandez, Associate Deputy Administrator, International Services, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Washington, DC: [See Link]

[aristeides]

Smallpox jab may be used for monkeypox . CDC announcement may come today.

[aristeides]

U.S. Expands Monkeypox Probe to 15 States .

[FairOpinion]

I have a question to anyone who knows:

I know nobody has died of monkey pox so far. But has anyone fully recovered? My impression is that they talk about people having come down with it, but I haven't read that, so and so came down and is fully recovered.

In terms of the smallpox vaccine, when is the CDC going to come to its senses and allow people get the smallpox vaccine voluntarily. Why should the government make such personal decision for us, by not even making it available to the general public?


Also there is another article today:
Monkeypox fear spreads to 4 more states Boy in New Jersey might be infected

http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20030611/5231527s.htm

The struggle to contain the monkeypox outbreak in the Midwest widened dramatically Tuesday as investigators fanned out across four more states to track down potentially infected pet prairie dogs.

The urgency of the hunt was heightened by the announcement that an 11-year-old New Jersey boy might have been infected with the virus during a visit to the Midwest last month.

At least 53 illnesses are under investigation in the outbreak, which was reported Saturday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The effort to find the animals has been complicated because some were moved from dealer to dealer, and some were sold at ''swap meets,'' gatherings where animals are bought or traded and records are not kept.

Illinois officials said 200 prairie dogs had been sent to Pocket Pets from Texas, and of those, 70 had been killed.

[Prince Charles]

From your link:

In Africa, monkeypox causes death in between one to 10 per cent of patients. Fine, who worked as an epidemiologist for the World Health Organization's smallpox eradication programme, says the mortality rate was 10 per cent among young unvaccinated people infected in African outbreaks.
"It's not a trivial infection," he warns. "A full blown case of monkeypox - my goodness, it looks like smallpox."

[iceskater]

I know nobody has died of monkey pox so far. But has anyone fully recovered?

It may be that the time frame is still too soon for full recovery. By that I mean, how long is the usual course once someone has been infected with monkeypox? I don't know but I would imagine it's something like 2 or 3 weeks. So, has enough time passed since this started?

[aristeides]

I'm not sure anybody has had time to completely recover yet. It's quite a new epidemic. I did have the impression that the members of that family on the farm in Wisconsin are getting better.

[aristeides]

CDC says smallpox vaccine should be used to control monkeypox . So the CDC did make the announcement today.

[iceskater]

"It's not a trivial infection," he warns. "A full blown case of monkeypox - my goodness, it looks like smallpox."

This is exactly what the infectious disease guy at my hospital was saying this week when he was interviewed on local TV. There is some concern with monkeypox now here in the US, that if a smallpox attack occurred, it would be very difficult for the doctor to distinguish which pox the patient has until some time has passed.

I had to laugh though. This was coming from the guy who vigorously opposed smallpox vaccinations for anybody because he thought there wasn't enough evidence that smallpox was going to be used as a bioterror weapon. That, and he thought it was "unfair" that the federal government would subsidize the smallpox vaccine costs when it won't subsidize other vaccines like for mumps, measles and rubella. Of course, none of these other diseases have been weaponized.... There's no arguing with some people.

[FairOpinion]

"So why would antibiotics have improved the boy's condition? Placebo effect? "
---

That was my question, but in some article I read that he initially didn't feel good, they gave him antibiotics, he seems to have improved and SUBSEQUENTLY, when he went home, got sick again, got worse and started to exhibit the monkeypox symptoms. So maybe his original "not feeling good" may have had nothing to do with monkey pox, since monkey pox has a latency of some 7-12 days.

[FairOpinion]

Wow!!! 15 states already!

It IS serious, as some of us have been saying it all along.

[FairOpinion]

"it would be very difficult for the doctor to distinguish which pox the patient has until some time has passed"
---

So make the smallpox vaccine available to the general public already! What are they waiting for?!

[iceskater]

So make the smallpox vaccine available to the general public already! What are they waiting for?!

You're preaching to the choir here.

Maybe they're waiting to see if this incident can be brought under control. If it can't (and I don't think they're going to find all those infected prairie dogs), then maybe, they'll make it available.

I don't know the status of numbers of doses of smallpox that are ready to be used. Even if the CDC recommended that everyone get smallpox vaccinations, I'm not sure there's enough vaccine on hand yet.

[Prince Charles]

This monkeypox outbreak will probably yield valuable data on many subjects with respect to what would happen here in a real smallpox outbreak.

[vetvetdoug]

Agreed, this is a harbinger of things that can occur with a Foreign Animal Zoonotic disease. Wait till they get FMD or Rift Valley Fever introduced into this country. We have had it easy so far, it is just a matter of time till they unleash a severe disease, one that is both human clinical disease significant and has a severe economic impact upon our food supply. The US will then find out monkeypox was a piece of cake.

[FairOpinion]

There is definitely enough vaccine, in fact by the end of last year they manufactured enough of the new vaccine to be sufficient for everyone.

For a while, right after 9-11 they were going to dilute the old vaccine which they found in a freezer, if we were going to have an attack before the new ones were ready. But they commissioned new ones and I remember reading that they were ready December 2002.

So now it's only the question of will to make it available.

[iceskater]

thanks. I'm afraid I hadn't kept up with that whole issue.

[iceskater]

I completely agree with you. This monkeypox situation is just a hint of what could happen.

I think it was Laurie Garrett who wrote a book, the title of which escapes me, that talks about viruses jumping from animals to humans, what has happened in the past and what might happen in the future. Darn, I wish I could remember the title of that book.

[Coleus]

Monkeypox is viral. So why would antibiotics have improved the boy's condition? Placebo effect? >>>>

You're the first person I know who's ever said that and how right you are. There are many doctors out there making a big mess of things by giving their patients antibiotics for the common cold and other viral infections. They do it because people expect something tangible in return for the $40-50.00 office visit rather than the verbal recommendations: bed rest, plenty of fluids, chicken soup, etc. When I had the chicken pox my doctor gave me a vitamin shot.

One reason why in this case he may have given antibiotics is when you are sick, your defenses are down allowing a secondary infection, bacterial in nature, to develop. And he may not have been sure it was this monkeypox virus and wanted to be safe.

[aristeides]

Laurie Garrett, The Coming Plague?

[vetvetdoug]

The Coming Plague. It was a very well written and thoughtful book that gave one a history and possible future of infectious diseases in the United States. Virus Hunter is another insightful book written by a former researcher at USAMARIDD. Fever written about 1974 was about the Lassa fever outbreak and the discovery of a haemorragic virus. These three are some of my favourites.

[vetvetdoug]

Looks like I lost that round of Disease trivial pursuit.

[Alas Babylon!]

If we haven't had any human to human transmission, a lot of people handled those prairie dogs. Seems like too many?

Touch my monkeyprairie dog????

[blam]

"This monkeypox outbreak will probably yield valuable data on many subjects with respect to what would happen here in a real smallpox outbreak."

Do you know if these same animals can carry smallpox. If so, makes you wonder how they ever got rid of it. (smallpox)

[Prince Charles]

Well, don't hold me to this, but I think reservoirs of orthopoxviruses other than vaccinia virus (what's used in the smallpox vaccine) are mainly wild rodents and other small mammals (along with infected humans, once upon a time), so the answer would be yes. Getting rid of smallpox was an arduous task indeed, from what I've read.

VetVetDoug can probably give you a better answer than my layman's understanding though.

[vetvetdoug]

I don't know the answer to that either. I have not read or remember studying about a small animal reservoir for smallpox.

[blam]

Thanks.

[Prince Charles]

Okay, thanks, I'll see if I can dig up something on Google.