As the number of monkeypox cases continues to rise around the world—and in the United States—public health officials are increasingly advising the public to be watchful for warning signs.
Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by infection with the monkeypox virus. It usually occurs in Central and West Africa. But for reasons not yet known, the virus is behaving in ways never before seen. Since early May, monkeypox cases have been reported in countries that don’t normally see it. Before this, monkeypox was also not known to spread easily among people or to infect large groups at once. Now, it appears to spread through close contact.