NEWS RELEASE
BOULDER COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH
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Residents who are at an increased risk of exposure to mpox are urged to take precautions following a recent rise in Colorado cases.
Mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) is a rare virus that does not easily spread between people with casual contact. Transmission can occur through contact with infectious sores and body fluids, contaminated items (clothing or bedding), or through respiratory droplets associated with prolonged face-to-face contact.
Anyone can get mpox—the virus does not discriminate against any group.
Early symptoms of mpox may include fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes and exhaustion. Most people get a rash or skin bumps one to three days after feeling sick. Some people don’t feel any symptoms before they get a rash.
If you have close contact with someone who has these symptoms:
- Check yourself for symptoms for 21 days.
- Get vaccinated.
- Information on vaccine requirements and eligibility is available at www.boco.org/mpox.
- Completing two courses of the mpox vaccination is crucial. Vaccinated people are ten times less likely to contract mpox than unvaccinated people and seven times less likely to become infected than those who are not vaccinated.
- Anyone with symptoms of mpox should contact a health care provider as soon as possible.
- Avoid close contact with others.
- Wear a mask, cover any skin lesions or sores, and notify the provider before you arrive to seek care.
“Although cases of mpox have decreased in Colorado since the height of the 2022 summer outbreak, a recent resurgence in reported cases is a concern and mpox hasn’t gone away,” said Alayna Younger, Boulder County Public Health Communicable Disease Epidemiologist. “There are simple steps we can take to protect ourselves and our communities. Everyone should take time to understand their risk of exposure to mpox, and seriously consider getting vaccinated before potential exposure because some people may not have visible symptoms even though they may be infectious.”
Mpox can spread to others from when symptoms start until the rash has fully healed and a fresh layer of skin has formed. New data shows that some people can spread mpox to others from one to four days before their symptoms even appear, which is why getting fully vaccinated before exposure is essential to stopping the spread.
To prevent the spread of mpox:
- Practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Minimize skin-to-skin contact with individuals exposed to the virus or those showing a rash or skin sores.
- Avoid contact with any materials, such as bedding, that have been in direct contact with someone with mpox.
- Reach out to a health care provider if you develop symptoms, as early recognition and testing can help prevent further transmission.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends mpox vaccination if:
- You had known or suspected exposure to someone with mpox.
- You had a sex partner in the past two weeks who was diagnosed with mpox.
- You are a man who has had sex with men or a transgender, nonbinary or gender-diverse person who in the past six months has had any of the following:
- A new diagnosis of one or more sexually transmitted diseases (e.g., chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis).
- More than one sex partner.
- You have had any of the following in the past six months:
- Sex at a commercial sex venue (like a sex club or bathhouse)
- Sex related to a large commercial event or in a geographic area (a city or county, for example) where mpox virus transmission is occurring
- Sex in exchange for money or other items
- You have a sex partner with any of the above risks
- You anticipate experiencing any of the above scenarios
- You have HIV or other causes of immune suppression and have had recent or anticipate future risk of mpox exposure from any of the above scenarios
- You work in settings where you may be exposed to mpox:
- You work with orthopoxviruses in a laboratory
Learn more about how to access a vaccine at www.boco.org/mpox.
More information on the mpox virus and how to limit infection risk:
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