Authorities said no one else had tested positive and did not specify how many people have been exposed to the virus, which is spread through close contact with an infected person and is not airborne. State officials said the child care worker is also employed at a home care facility and they were in contact with the affected client.
“All available state, local and federal resources are being deployed to help families,” Sameer Vohra, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, said at a news conference.
He praised federal regulators for allowing early vaccination of exposed children with parental approval and “without jumping through the normal hoops of this process.”
Federal authorities have confirmed more than 7,500 cases of monkeypox across the United States, overwhelmingly in gay and bisexual men. Federal officials say at least five children have confirmed cases of monkeypox believed to be the result of family transmission.
Illinois daycare worker’s case escalated concerns from public health authorities that fear the outbreak will circulate more widely and affect more vulnerable populations with severe consequences – including children – if not contained, particularly as students return to schools and college campuses this fall.
Monkeypox illnesses usually clear up after a few weeks, and there are no known deaths in the United States. But for children and people with weakened immune systems, the disease can lead to serious medical complications and has had a higher death rate among young children in past outbreaks, according to the World Health Organization.
Public health officials are trying to send a nuanced message that sexually active gay men are at greatest risk of contracting monkeypox, as it is currently spread through close contact, often skin-to-skin, primarily among men with sex with men. But, officials warn, viruses don’t always stay in one demographic and can infect anyone.
“An infection anywhere is potentially an infection everywhere,” said Anne Rimoin, a UCLA epidemiologist who studied the monkeypox outbreak and praised authorities’ efforts to quickly make vaccines available to those exposed. in Illinois. “The more cases we see, the more possibilities we see for spread – and the more likely those scenarios are to exist.”
While monkeypox infections can incubate for weeks, Rimoin also pointed out that people exposed to the daycare worker in Illinois would not necessarily test positive. “Household contacts don’t always catch monkeypox – it’s not as transmissible as the coronavirus,” she said.
Although monkeypox in the current outbreak is primarily spread through close contact during sex between gay and bisexual men, global health authorities warn that it can spread in other ways that usually involve prolonged contact, such as cuddling, kissing and dancing without clothes on. Potential sources of spread to children include prolonged clothing, cuddling, and feeding, as well as shared items such as towels, bedding, cups, and utensils.
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sent out a health advisory to clinicians warning them to be on the lookout for symptoms of the virus among other vulnerable populations, including children and adolescents. To prevent the spread of the virus between children and caregivers or household members, officials recommend avoiding contact with infected people and their clothing, towels and bedding.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker (D) declared monkeypox a public health emergency on Monday, saying the move would improve coordination among state agencies and speed up Illinois’ response to the virus. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra later declared a national public health emergency for monkeypox on Thursday, with Biden administration officials saying the move would unlock new funding and authority that could help contain the virus and end the US outbreak.
In the Illinois case, the daycare worker with monkeypox is isolated and in good condition, officials said. Families of potentially exposed children have been offered mobile testing and financial assistance to self-isolate if needed, authorities said.
“Anyone who has the slightest suspicion, we will put them in isolation pending any type of result,” said Julie Pryde, administrator for the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District.
