Monkeypox cases are on the rise in Chicago, health officials warn

Health experts urge caution amid resurgence of Chicago monkeypox cases.

The Chicago Department of Public Health has reported five cases this year through mid-April. However, 20 cases have since been detected, according to department data.

The disease, now called Mpox by health experts, spread rapidly across the country last summer, mostly among gay and bisexual men. It arrived in Chicago in early June and was infecting more than 100 Chicagoans each week by mid-July, but cases quickly peaked amid an extensive effort to prevent the spread through vaccination and precaution.

The resurgence of the disease occurs at the beginning of summer and with the rapid approach of large gatherings for the most affected groups. Chicago Public Health Director Dr. Allison Arwady and other health experts are urging those at risk to help stop the spread of the virus that causes painful rashes and flu-like symptoms.

“It is important that people protect themselves. It is serious. It is avoidable. You can easily get your Mpox vaccine,” Arwady said last week.

Howard Brown Health saw just one case in a 14-week period earlier this year, spokesman Wren O’Kelley told the Tribune on Tuesday. But the LGBTQ-focused Chicago health center has since treated 11 new cases in the past month, she added.

“We went from virtually nothing to a pretty noticeable increase,” O’Kelley said.

The disease is often sexually transmitted, but can be spread through any type of prolonged skin-to-skin contact, O’Kelley said. It often begins with flu-like symptoms before progressing to rashes one to three days later. These rashes, a distinct feature of the disease similar to pimples or blisters, often first appear around the genital area and the hindquarters, but can also appear around the mouth, hands and back , she said.

The disease has primarily spread to gay and bisexual men in Chicago, although other people have also contracted the disease, according to CDPH data.

O’Kelley said Howard Brown was trying to “make noise” about the small number of cases to avoid a larger increase. Last summer, cases soared, infecting more than 800 Chicagoans less than three months after the city’s first case was detected. The current resurgence was somewhat expected, as communicable diseases tend to increase throughout the summer, O’Kelley said.

“We think for a lot of people it kind of fell off their radar,” she said. “Hopefully it won’t become a big deal this summer.”

She urged people to know the vaccination and health status of their sexual partners and other people they have close contact with. Other precautions include hand washing and wearing masks amid flu-like symptoms, she said.

Howard Brown is focusing his prevention efforts on upcoming LGBTQ-focused events, including Pride Month in June and the Mr. Leather International Conference that will bring thousands of gay men from around the world to Chicago in late May, O said. ‘Kelley.

Organizers of the Mr. Leather International Conference, starting May 25, said on their website that they are working with the White House and the Chicago Department of Public Health to encourage guests to get vaccinated against the Mpox. Conference organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

While the vaccine used to protect against the disease was in short supply last summer, access has since expanded as supply chains have been established and demand has fallen, O’Kelley said.

“The scarcity problem that was there kind of dried up,” she said. “If you want it and you’re eligible, we can provide it for you.”

Many Mpox patients that Howard Brown has recently treated had previously been vaccinated, O’Kelley said. The vaccination led to less severe cases with “much, much milder” symptoms, she said. Howard Brown accepts vaccination appointments and performs walk-in vaccinations at his clinics across the city, she added.

Arwady echoed the importance of vaccination, adding that at-risk Chicagoans can take the two-dose vaccination course at CDPH clinics for sexually transmitted infections free of charge. The public health department recommends the vaccine, JYNNEOS, for sexually active bisexual men, gay men, and transgender people, as well as anyone who has been in close contact with someone diagnosed with Mpox.

While many cases of Mpox are not serious, the disease has killed three people in Chicago and resulted in 77 hospitalizations, officials say. Some cases can be protracted and extremely painful, said Dr. Beverly Sha, an infectious disease physician with Rush University System for Health.

Sha recalled a patient whose case lasted six months, during which he was hospitalized and discharged and “honestly miserable.”

“If we can get people to get vaccinated if they haven’t already and to take other precautions, we could minimize the number of future cases,” Sha said Tuesday.

The current resurgence of Mpox is unlikely to be the disease’s last, she added. She urged those at risk to practice safer sex by limiting the number of sex partners, especially unknown sex partners, and using condoms during sex.

The hospital system is using the antiviral drug tecovirimat as ongoing trials continue to determine the drug’s effectiveness in treating the disease, Sha said. She encouraged people who test positive to come to the hospital to take part in the trials.

Several of the people who recently tested positive for Mpox in Chicago had traveled to other cities and countries not long before, Sha said, citing information shared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the cases up until the start. may.

It’s hard to say how many diagnoses the city might miss, she said. And it’s hard to predict whether cases could rise further in early summer.

“We don’t know which direction it’s going to go,” Sha said.