After a first case identified in 2015, a new “Alaskan pox” infection has just been detected in the United States. The identified virus, transmitted by small mammals, would affect humans only occasionally.
- A woman with skin lesions contracted an orthopoxvirus in August, from the same family as the one that causes smallpox.
- This is the second case reported in Alaska since 2015.
- However, the risk of transmission to humans remains low, as does the risk of epidemics.
In 2015, an orthopoxvirus, a virus from the smallpox family, was detected in a resident of Fairbanks, Alaska. It has just been detected again in another resident of the city, located in the state of Alaska, United States.
According to the information relayed by the site Futura, the patient would have contracted this new virus in August. A gray lesion appeared on his left arm, followed by erythema four days later. She also reported to the medical team shoulder pain, fatigue, fever and swollen lymph nodes (adenopathy).
Taken to the local hospital, she underwent a biopsy of the skin lesion, which confirmed her infection with an orthopoxvirus.
An uncertain mode of transmission
Transmitted by small mammals, this “Alaksa smallpox” is due to an orthopoxvirus, from the Chordopoxviridae family. While they can cause mild skin lesions, they can also cause smallpox, an acute and frequently fatal contagious disease. The detected orthopoxvirus is of the same type as those causing smallpox, but in a more harmless form.
According to local health authorities, the patient has two cats and frequents the dogs of other family members, who may have come into contact with wild animals. However, the mode of transmission remains unclear, as in the case of 2015, where none of the patient’s animals had tested positive for orthopoxvirus. “Given the geographic proximity of the two cases, it is likely that the virus originated from an animal living in Alaska”authorities said.
In both cases, this Alaskan pox turned out to be rather benign. In the recently infected patient, the skin lesion disappeared within six weeks and the pain in the shoulder persisted for two weeks, compared to 6 months for the previous patient.
No risk of epidemic
If a new case of Alaskan pox has been detected, the authorities so far rule out any risk of an epidemic. With two cases identified in the space of five years, it is likely that human infection is only occasional, recalls Futura. But, to avoid any new contamination, the experts call on the inhabitants of Fairbanks to be careful, and recommend that they do not approach wild animals, avoid all contact with droppings and wash their hands regularly.
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