An unnamed staff member at Lakeview Primary School tested positive for monkeypox over fall break as stated in a post released by the Baldwin County School District on Tuesday.
According to the letter, the school was notified on Oct. 17 about the positive test results. Due to HIPPA regulations, the staff member was not named. As of now, Lakeview Primary School is working with the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) North Central Health District to begin the contact tracing process.
According to the statement, “Staff members and parents of students considered to be close contacts in accordance with CDC guidelines will receive separate communications advising them of next steps.”
According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, monkeypox is a virus that causes rash, bumps, or sores near the genitals, or anal area, and other areas around the body. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches and backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills, exhaustion, sore throat, nasal congestion and cough.
The announcement made by the school district notes that the virus can only be spread through direct contact with the infectious rash, scabs, or body fluids and therefore, “that the risk of transmission is very low in a school setting.”
“We encourage parents to closely monitor the health of their children and to contact their physician at the earliest sign of the virus,” states the announcement released by the school district.
According to the CDC, as of Oct. 17, there have been a total of 27,468 cases in the United States. In the state of Georgia, there have been 1,873 recorded cases per the same date.
If there is any belief that a child may be infected with the virus, the school asks parents or guardians to notify the school and contact their child's primary care physician.
“Monkeypox symptoms usually start within 3 weeks of exposure to the virus. The illness typically lasts 2 to 4 weeks,” states the CDC. “Infections with the type of monkeypox virus identified in this outbreak—the Clade IIb —are rarely fatal. Over 99% of people who get this form of the disease are likely to survive.”