Penn State student tests positive for monkeypox: Experts fear college campuses could be hotbed for outbreaks when fall semester starts as US infections top 14,115
- Student — who is unnamed — is in isolation and their contacts are being traced
- They attend University Park campus, the biggest at the university, but do not live on site. All first year students are offered a place at the campus
- Health officials at the university said the case was spotted on August 13
- It comes amid mounting concerns the return of universities could spark uptick in monkeypox cases, with the U.S. total currently at 14,115
- Virus is mostly being detected among gay or bisexual men at present
- But there are fears that it will spread to other more vulnerable groups
A student at Penn State University has tested positive for monkeypox as experts fear the coming fall semester will spark outbreaks of the virus.
Health officials at the university said the unnamed student is now in isolation and that their close contacts were being traced.
The individual attends the University Park campus in central Pennsylvania, the college's largest with some 46,000 undergraduates, but they reside off-campus.
The student received the positive result on August 13, about a week before the start of the fall term on August 22.
There are mounting concerns the return of colleges and universities could help drive the viral outbreak, with the latest case marking the second at a college this month. On Thursday, the University of Maryland said a staff member had a presumptive case and that more infections will likely be detected in the coming weeks.
America has spotted more than 14,115 monkeypox cases so far with the vast majority among gay or bisexual men, although it is feared the virus — which is spread via physical contact — will spread to other groups.
A student has tested positive for monkeypox at Penn State University. They attend the University Park campus (pictured) - the largest at the college - but do not live on site
The above map shows the number of monkeypox cases detected by state. The outbreak is largest in New York, California and Florida
Monkeypox is primarily spread by skin-to-skin contact with lesions on an infected individual — mostly via sex in the current outbreak — but it can also be transmitted through touching scabs left by patients on clothing and bedsheets.
Penn State University revealed the monkeypox case this week, advising any students experiencing symptoms to contact their health provider.
They did not reveal the age of the student, whether they had visited the campus, or how many people were being contact traced, citing privacy concerns.
The college is one of America's largest, with more than 73,000 undergraduates spread across 20 campuses.
The case only adds to concerns that the return of colleges this month could spark an uptick in monkeypox infections, amid close contact between students.
Announcing its first monkeypox case yesterday, the University of Maryland's health director Spyridon Marinopoulos said: 'As this disease continues to be present across the country and the world, it is likely we will experience monkeypox cases on campus.'
He also urged anyone suffering symptoms — including a rash — to contact university health services or their healthcare provider.
The above shows the number of monkeypox cases detected by day (yellow bars) and the seven-day average (white line)
This map highlights states with the largest uptick in monkeypox cases compared to a week ago, and the hotspot (New York in red)
Several universities already have monkeypox tests on site for students, while others have prepared accommodation to help those who catch it isolate if necessary.
But there is mounting fear in the academic and scientific community that the return of academic institutions could spark an uptick in cases.
Dr Rachel Cox, an assistant professor in at the MGH Institute of Health Professions, told CNN earlier this month: 'As we head into the fall, I'm concerned about outbreaks on college campuses as they are often a place where individuals engage in higher risk sexual activity and are in close contact with many different people.
'We need to make sure we're prepared to allocate resources like tests, vaccines, and antivirals to places that may become hotspots.'
Andrea Conner, the head of student affairs at Lake Forest College in Illinois, says there is a 'lot of fear' the start of the new academic year could lead to more cases in universities.
She told NPR that the same team that handled Covid is already putting together guidance for students to avoid monkeypox, and plans are being put in place to help those who may contract the virus.
Monkeypox infections tend to begin with flu-like symptoms about three days after infection before a rash appears and then spreads across the body. Patients are required to isolate for around four weeks, until the rash has scabbed over and the scabs have fallen off.
In the current outbreak, however, many patients are experiencing rashes in the genital area as a first symptoms before these spread across the body.
The main treatment available at present is TPOXX — an antiviral which stops the virus spreading to other cells slowing down an infection.
Some patients may also be offered the monkeypox vaccine to treat their infection.
Penn State warned today that students could catch monkeypox through direct contact with rash, scabs, bodily fluids or droplets from an infected person. They also said touching fabrics previously touched by the rash of a patient or being scratched or bitten by an infected animal puts them at risk.
To avoid catching the disease, they said students should not have close, skin-to-skin contact with anyone who looks like they may have monkeypox.
This includes not kissing, hugging, cuddling or having sex with a suspected patient, not sharing eating utensils or cups, and not handling their bedding.
More than nine in ten infections are currently being detected among gay or bisexual men, with an average age around 35 years old. Sixty percent of cases are in people of color.
But there are mounting concerns that the virus will start to spill over into other groups — including the student population which was also a hotbed of COVID-19 transmission during the pandemic.
New York is the national hotspot with 2,744 infections detected, followed by California with 2,663 and Florida with 1,372.
At the other end of the scale, Wyoming is now the only state not to have spotted a case of the disease. Alaska, Montana, South Dakota and Vermont have each detected two cases.
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