State health officials have identified a second probable case of the monkeypox virus in Oklahoma.
The Oklahoma State Department of Health said the central Oklahoma resident recently returned to the state after traveling internationally to a country with confirmed cases.
That individual is currently in isolation. Investigations are ongoing as officials work to identify those who might have been exposed.
OSDH said this probable case has no connection or relation to the first case of monkeypox identified in the state during the first week of June.
Testing at the CDC have since confirmed the first case as monkeypox.
“We knew there was a possibility of more cases being identified in the state,” State Epidemiologist Jolianne Stone explained. “Our response team remains activated and continues to coordinate various areas within the agency to respond as necessary when a case arises.”
Monkeypox is not easily transmissible, but can be transmitted to humans through direct, physical contact with an infected person or animal.
"It can also be transmitted from person to person through large respiratory droplets or through direct contact with body fluids and lesions, as well as bedding and other contaminated materials," the OSDH said in a news release.
Symptoms may include fever, rash and swollen lymph nodes. A person infected with the virus will also present with firm, deep-seated, and well-circumscribed lesions.
For more information, visit the OSDH's website on the virus.
