Diseases and Conditions

Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by a virus that occurs mostly in central and western Africa. However, monkeypox infections also occur in other parts of the world. The monkeypox virus can be transmitted from animals to humans. These animals include different African rodents and monkeys. Once a person becomes infected with the monkeypox virus they can pass it to other people. Monkeypox is not a very contagious disease, and the risk of contracting monkeypox is generally low. Recently there has been an increase in human monkeypox infections in different parts of the world, including the US.