Sacramento County reports fifth probable monkeypox case; second case in two days

Officials have detected a fifth likely case of monkeypox in Sacramento County through contact tracing, the local health office announced Tuesday afternoon.

Samantha Mott, a county health spokeswoman, said in an emailed statement that a specimen has been sent to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for confirmatory testing. She also said in the statement that the “risk to the general public remains low.”

On Monday, health officials announced a fourth likely case of monkeypox was detected in Sacramento County, and a specimen was sent to the CDC for confirmatory testing.

If confirmed, the local cases reported this week would be the sixth and seventh cases of the virus in California since May 24.

The three previous Sacramento County monkeypox cases have been confirmed by the CDC. Local health officials have not specified whether the fourth and fifth cases were a close contact of the first, second or third case identified in the county.

“We have a small number that we’re dealing with, and we have to maintain confidentiality,” Sacramento County health officer Dr. Olivia Kasirye told reporters on Monday.

The first patient had recently traveled to Europe, and the second and third cases were identified as close contacts of that patient, county officials said in previous statements.

Kasirye has said the fourth detected presumptive case returned positive for orthopox virus, which is a subfamily of viruses that includes monkeypox and smallpox.

The first four detected cases produced mild symptoms, and the patients were isolating at home, the health officer has said. On Tuesday, county officials did not release any information about the symptoms of the fifth patient.

The CDC as of an update last Friday had confirmed 25 cases of monkeypox across a dozen states, with California and New York leading the U.S. at five cases each, followed by Florida at three.

Spread of monkeypox is linked to prolonged, skin-to-skin exposure, according to experts.

Symptoms of monkeypox include fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and exhaustion. The patient typically develops a rash, often beginning on the face then spreading to other parts of the body, normally about one to three days after fever.

The incubation period is typically one to two weeks but can range up to three weeks, and the illness typically lasts two to four weeks, according to the county news release.

Doctors and public health officials urge residents to practice safe sex. These practices may include abstaining from sex, practicing monogamy and using condoms during sex to limit exposure to the virus.

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