3rd Illinois monkeypox case identified in DuPage County

WHEATON, Ill. (AP) - Public health officials have identified a third case of monkeypox a week after the first two cases appeared in Illinois.

WLS-TV reports that a man in DuPage County tested positive for monkeypox after traveling internationally. The adult male was in a country that has reported an outbreak, according to the DuPage County Health Department.

Test results were positive Friday at an Illinois Department of Public Health lab. A test to confirm the outcome is pending at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

'œThe case remains isolated and at this time there is no indication there is a great risk of extensive local spread of the virus, as monkeypox does not spread as easily as the COVID-19 virus,'ť the health department said in news release.

The outbreak of the viral disease reached Illinois June 2 in a man who had traveled to Europe. A second Chicago resident was found to have the illness a day later.

Monkeypox typically spreads by skin-to-skin contact. Most patients suffer fever, body aches, chills and fatigue. Others might develop a rash and lesions on the face and hands that can spread to other parts of the body. It is rarely fatal.