Latest Update on Mpox
August 2024

Prevention Information

• Vaccine: Jynneos®: non-replicating live virus; prevents Mpox and Smallpox; 2 doses >28d apart
  • Received emergency use authorization (EUA) from FDA in 2022 for Mpox prevention
  • Recommended by ACIP to prevent Mpox in exposed patients or those at high risk
  • CDC Mpox Vaccination Site addressing considerations for Mpox immunization & risks
  • FDA EUA (2022) Factsheet for use of Jynneos® to prevent Mpox
• Masking: Practice masking and distancing in situations where social exposure may be possible
• Hygiene: If exposed to infected individual practice skin hygiene in all potentially affected sites

NMOSD Patient Information

Note: Jynneos® considered to be safe in patients receiving immune-modifying or -suppressing therapeutics as it is non-replicating; [ACAM2000® is a replicating live virus and thus is not recommended for use in patients with NMOSD receiving immune-altering medicine]

Virus Information

• Virus Name: Monkeypox virus
• Virus Type: Enveloped, double-stranded DNA virus
• Virus Classification: Poxviridae family
  • (other members include smallpox [variola])
• Virus Variants: clade I (Congo Basin); clade II (West African)
  • Clade I: more virulent and more contagious than clade II
  • Clade II: less virulent and less contagious than clade I
• Related Viruses: Varicella-zoster virus (chicken pox; shingles)
• Other DNA viruses: Herpesviruses; Hepatitis B virus; others

Disease Information

• Disease Name: Mpox (formerly called Monkey Pox)
• U.S. Incidence: Since 2022 ~35,000 cases / 60 deaths; prior U.S. outbreak in 2003
• Variant Cases: As of 8/22/24 all U.S. cases are clade II

Epidemiology Information

• Distribution: Equatorial Africa (Central = West > East)
• Proximate Risk: Countries bordering affected regions in Africa
• Global Risks: Travelers returning from high-risk African regions
• WHO statement: Mpox outbreak as public health emergency

Note: Mpox is largely spread by close or direct contact with an infected person. It is most commonly spread through sexual or intimate contact; incidence is higher among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM). Most individuals who do not travel to high risk regions or practice high risk lifestyles remain at very low risk of infection. Mpox can be spread by respiratory secretions of those infected (e.g. derived from cough, nasal or oral secretions).

Clinical Information

• Incubation Period: 3-21 days post-exposure
• Signs:
  • Hallmark: rash that evolves to painful fluid-filled blisters (vesicles) that scab (pox)
  • Other: fever, chills, swollen lymph nodes
  • Differential Dx: Mpox; Chickenpox; Shingles; Histoplasma; Cryptococcus; other IDs
• Symptoms:
  • Hallmark: Pain (skin blisters); scabs take weeks to resolve and may cause scarring
  • Other: flu-like (headache; sore throat; cough; aches; fatigue)

CDC Advisory Information

(updated 8-24-2024)

• CDC About Mpox Site provides an overview of Mpox and its recent outbreak beginning 2022
• Traveler Health Guidance (also see: www.cdc.gov/travel)

IMPORTANT: Information Only – Consult Your Neurologist or Doctor